


Bits and Pieces of A Class Act

by Slothquisitor



Series: A Class Act [2]
Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Teachers, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-29
Updated: 2018-07-19
Packaged: 2018-11-06 10:28:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 53
Words: 49,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11034315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slothquisitor/pseuds/Slothquisitor
Summary: A place to put all of the many prompts and shorts connected to the Class Act universe.





	1. Grief

**Author's Note:**

> Anon prompted question about Cullen’s mother’s funeral. Cullen’s POV.

In the beginning his parents hadn’t made much of a big deal out of the whole thing. They’d called a family meeting and explained that mom was sick, that she needed chemotherapy and that it was going to be alright. Cancer seemed like a faraway sort of thing that other people went through, not their family. And his parents hadn’t seemed worried, so Cullen hadn’t been either. He’d been hopeful, right up until they’d put her on hospice and brought a hospital bed into the living room of their small house. **  
**

He sat down on the couch, bent over his arms resting on his legs, and he stared at the indentations in the carpet. He’d hated that bed. What it represented. Mia had tried to make it feel more homely, put a set of pretty yellow sheets on it. Yellow had been her favorite color.

They’d taken the bed away sometime after the body, and now all that remained were the indents crushing down the carpet. Cullen felt them too, the weight of the last few months, crushing his chest, making it hard to breathe.

He was still dressed in his only suit. It was a little small, something he’d only worn for funerals and special occasions at the Chantry. It felt constricting, like the constant stream of people coming to the house. Cullen had thought the funeral was bad enough, but nothing quite compared to all of the people who kept stopping by the house afterwards.

Mia had been kind and gracious all day to everyone, probably a good thing considering his father had been mostly silent, gruffly greeting those who he knew best and leaving all the casual acquaintances to Mia and Cullen.

There was only so much their father could handle, and it seemed as though now that the funeral was finally over, he’d reached his limit. It was the mid-Guardian and bitterly cold, but he was out in the barn anyways working on the tractor or something else that didn’t need to be worked on. Cullen envied him, wishing he had something he could bury himself into.

They’d had a momentary reprieve from visitors and Mia sunk down heavily on the couch, “I’m exhausted.”

Cullen nodded, “Me too.”

“Where did Bran and Rosie get off to?” Mia asked.

Branson was fourteen and Rosalie twelve. It still felt a little surreal, their mother’s death and illness. At school Cullen found he could pretend things were the same as they’d always been, but the last few days had been awful. His friends didn’t know what to say. He didn’t blame them.  

It was worse for his younger siblings. The last few nights Rosalie had crept into the room Branson and Cullen shared, he pretended to be asleep the first time as she laid down atop his bed, wrapped in the quilt their mother had made her years ago. The night before when she came in he’d asked if she was okay in a whisper. She’d shaken her head, blonde curls bouncing free of the quilt she’d wrapped around herself.

He quietly sung a song their mother always had on nights when they couldn’t sleep and she’d fallen asleep. Bran didn’t say anything on the other side of the room, but Cullen knew he was awake, his usual deep breathing absent from the darkness. Branson had seemed to feel the loss of their mother most acutely. He was usually happy and goofy, one to always crack jokes, but he had retreated into himself. The house felt utterly devoid of brightness and laughter, something his mother and Branson had always supplied.

“They’re at Aunt Lena’s,” Cullen replied. She wasn’t really their aunt, but had been around their whole lives. She’d taken Bran and Rosie home to her house after the funeral. It had probably been a good call, based on how many people had arrived to pay their respects. Cullen was so sick of hearing how sorry everyone was, how wonderful his mother was, how she was with the Maker now. None of those things fixed the fact that she was gone and his life felt like it was falling apart.

“Good,” Mia sighed, “probably good for them to get out. I called the school and excused all of you for tomorrow.”

Cullen’s head shot up, “What?”

“I thought we might just need another day or so to be home and together,” Mia explained, pulling at the hem of her black skirt.

“I don’t want to stay home tomorrow,” Cullen said quickly.

“Cullen,” Mia took a deep breath, “You can’t just pretend like everything’s okay-” The condescension in her voice made him angry, he’d been swallowing down anger all day long, but Mia was going to try every last bit of his patience.

He didn’t speak and she continued, “You know, it’s okay to take some time to feel sad and to just be together. I think it would be best.”

Her tone was the perfect imitation of his mother and at that he snapped, “Quit trying to be Mom, Mia. I was there when Mother Elisabet talked to us too. Of course everything’s not fucking okay. This whole void-taken day has been a reminder of how not okay things are.”

Mia glared at him, he knew she was annoyed at his swearing. He couldn’t find it in him to care, “Tomorrow I’m going to go back to school because I need to get out of this house and do something.” Despite how hard he tried to keep his voice even it cracked then, filled with emotion of the day. Tears burned in the corners of his eyes and he willed them not to fall. He turned away from his sister, began stalking down the hallway towards his room.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Mia followed after him, voice shrill.

“To change,” Cullen said over his shoulder.

The doorbell rang and he froze in the hallway. He could hear the exhaustion in Mia’s voice, “There’s more people here.”

Cullen turned around and nodded, silently trudging back to the living room. He wouldn’t abandon his sister. Not today. 


	2. Cullen's Choice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anon prompted question about how Cullen’s father reacts to Cullen’s decision to join the army. Cullen’s POV.

Honnleath had never felt as small or as suffocating as it did in the months after his mother’s death. She’d been well-loved by everyone in the small town, always helping at school events and taking care of anyone who needed it. Whenever she heard of someone having a hard time she would be the first one over to their house, casserole in hand to see what could be done.

Her illness had been sudden, swift. Mia had moved back home and Cullen found it more difficult to get along with her than ever. She seemed to be trying so hard to fill the hole mom had left, and part of him wished she wouldn’t try. He glanced to the framed picture Mia had set on his bedside table. It was from his graduation day. He was dressed in the same dark green robes everyone else had been, gold cords around his neck. Mia had made candy necklaces for Branson and Rosalie to give to him and they were piled around his neck. His father stood on his left in the photo, his hand resting on his shoulder, smile not meeting his eyes.

Cullen tore his eyes away from the photograph and stood. He tried to shake the nervousness from his body. He had a plan and he needed to talk to his father about it today if he was going to go through with it. His mother had died before he received his college acceptance letters, and when they came Cullen found himself unexcited. His father had quietly assured him to pick whatever college he wanted, that they’d make it work, but Cullen glanced towards Mia and saw the truth in her gaze.

They didn’t have the money, even with Cullen’s scholarships.

They lived on a farm in a rural town. They’d always had enough, his parents had ensured that, but Cullen knew that the insurance hadn’t covered nearly enough of the costs of his mother’s last ditch treatment efforts. He knew in the way his father refused to take the phone calls when any of the kids were around, but Cullen had overheard a phone call late one night. His father was a proud man, but Cullen could hear the pleading note in his voice when he spoke. That was what cemented Cullen’s decision.

Cullen walked from his room towards the kitchen to go out towards the barn where he was sure his father would be. Mia was sitting at the kitchen table, pouring over a textbook. She’d transferred to the local community college and lowered her credit hours, she was working in town at one of the restaurants. Cullen wondered if she hated it, giving up the fancy college she’d been attending to come back home when they found out mom was sick.

She glanced up when he entered, “Hey.”

“Hi,” he replied.

His fingers were around the metal handle of the screen door when she spoke, “I know what you’re thinking. You don’t have to do anything so dramatic.”

He stopped, turned to look at her, “Stay out of it, Mia.” Of course she would have figured it out, probably prying in his things again.

“Come on Cullen, it wouldn’t be so bad to just get a job and go to the college here,” Mia said.

He didn’t look at his sister, instead focused hard on the yellow wallpaper in the kitchen, half expecting his mother to walk into the small kitchen and scold them for the fight that he felt coming.

“That’s not what I want,” he said quietly. He needed to leave this town, this house, the sooner the better.

Mia sighed, “It’s better for us all to stick together right now.”

He hated the condescension in her voice and he shook his head, “I’m going to find Dad.”

He slammed the screen door behind him, not looking back even when he heard her muttering something about him being stubborn.

He walked out the back of the house towards the barn. Cullen remembered when the barn had looked so huge to him, and now it felt so small. The gravel crunched under his feet in his too worn sneakers. He plunged his hands into the pockets of his jeans, his father was working on the tractor. He was covered in grime and the whole place smelled of engine grease.

His father looked up as he approached, “Hey pup, give me just a second.”

Cullen nodded mutely, his stomach churning with worry. He watched his father move around the far side of the tractor and then wipe his hands off on a dirty blue towel. Cullen sat down on one of the hay bails that hung around the edge of the barn. His father approached him, but didn’t sit down.

His hair was graying, quicker the last few months it seemed. He just seemed so much older to Cullen than he ever had. “What’s bothering you, Cullen?”

Cullen sighed, “I’ve decided I’m going to enlist….in the army.”

His father stood silent, stoic. So Cullen continued, “If I do they’ll pay for school and then you won’t need to worry about it. I’m not just doing it for that reason though, I want to. I want to help people and that’s what they do.”

Cullen looked into his father’s face, worried at what his reaction would be. His eyes were sad, blue pools of despair. Cullen stood, unsure what else to do. His father rested his hand on Cullen’s shoulder, stopping him from moving any nearer.

He gave his hold on his shoulder a squeeze, “Alright, son.”

Cullen swallowed hard, keeping his thoughts to himself as his father turned away from him and walked out the backside of the barn towards the fields that lay beyond.

Cullen remained, alone, resolve growing stronger as he watched his father’s figure disappear into the golden fields. 


	3. Please Come Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short Satinalia piece happening the last Satinalia before Cullen came back to Ferelden for good. Mia’s POV.

Outside the wind howled and white flakes of snow swirled through the air. The house was warm against the bitter cold, the slightly fogged windows evidence of the contrast. It was dark inside except for the glowing lights of the Satinalia tree that stood in front of the window. Mia thought it looked alright, despite the bottom half of it being completely bare of ornaments. Liam had decided they looked especially delicious, so Mia had to pull all of them within his reach off of the tree. It was a first, Clara hadn’t been interested in the tree at all until she got old enough to know better.

The lights on the tree reflected in the murky window, making it look as if lights blazed on far off into the dark, snowy night. Mia liked this time of day, the hour or so between putting the kids down before she followed. The world was quiet, and there were no responsibilities tugging her in different directions. The kids were asleep, and Matthew was too, having worked an early shift. So she was alone in the house, and sometimes it was nice to feel as if she had the place to herself.

It was exactly one week before Satinalia and Mia thought that this time of year had to be her favorite. The hopefulness and happiness that was in the air before the holiday was comforting. It had always been her mother’s favorite too. Though she suspected her favorite part had always been more about the gift giving than anything else. Mia wished she was more like her mother, but more than that she wished she was there to guide her through the relationships with her siblings, through being a mother herself. The holidays weren’t when she missed her parents the most, but there were more reminders of their absence than usual.

She did the best she could. Tried to make her home the gathering place for her siblings. Tried to give them some degree of normalcy around this time of year. She made all the dishes her mother had, the traditions had remained the same too. It wasn’t much, but she tried.  

Mia curled up on the couch next to the tree, still staring out the window as the winter storm unleashed its fury on South Reach. She pulled out her cell phone to try calling Cullen again. He hadn’t answered any of the other times she’d tried him that day. She’d left him messages, but he was so bad about returning them even in the best of times. And she knew that this wasn’t the best of times.

Things in Kirkwall were getting worse, the unrest was all over the news each night. That was another reason she need to talk to Cullen. Get him home, even for just a quick reprieve. She knew her brother well enough to know that he would be working around the clock. She also knew the chances of him answering this time of night were likely slim.  

She dialed his number and waited through several rings, not quite expecting him to pick up. And when he did, she very nearly dropped the phone in surprise.

“Hello?” His voice was brisk, no greeting in it.

“Cullen, it’s Mia.”

“Oh….um….hey, isn’t it sort of late for you?” he said. It was as if he hadn’t even looked at the phone when he answered, hadn’t expected to find himself talking with his sister.

“The kids are asleep, and you weren’t returning my messages. I thought I’d try you again,” she replied.

“Well you sort of caught me at a bad time,” Cullen said. His voice sounded tired, exhausted even. She braced herself for the brush off that was sure to come. “I’ve only got a few minutes.”

Mia pulled her legs up to her chest, “I’ll keep this short then. Are you coming home for Satinalia? You hadn’t said.”

She could almost see him pinch the bridge of his nose as he responded words clipped, “Mia, Satinalia? Have you even been watching the news?”

She had. Watched it every night, checked the news every single morning. “You are not the only capable person in Kirkwall, when was the last time you had a day off?” Mia said.

“There’s no real time off here,” Cullen ground out, “But it’s not just that things are bad, flights out to Ferelden are so expensive this time of year. I promise to come out when things have calmed down.”

“If it’s the money that stopping you, Matthew and I will pay for the flight,” Mia said. She knew there was a pleading note to her voice, and she hated it.

“Mia, it’s not happening this year,” Cullen said with finality.

She picked at the edge of her sweater, “Cullen, please come home for Satinalia.”

There was a pause on the line, then finally, “South Reach isn’t my home. It’s yours.”

Her heart broke at those words, “Alright then. I’ll let you go. Be safe.”

“Mia, don’t….alright. I’ll call you on Satinalia. I promise,” Cullen said.

She didn’t bother saying goodbye, threw the phone down on the couch cushion as tears streamed down her face. Maybe it was too much to ask for him to come, too much to expect of him. He’d almost not come back for their father’s funeral last year. That had been the last time they’d all been together. She wondered if it was so wrong of her to want her family together again for the holidays.

She was so lost in her emotions that she didn’t hear Matthew until he was right in front of her, kneeling down, “Mia, what’s wrong?”

She wiped at her eyes, frustrated that they were falling, “Cullen isn’t coming for Satinalia.”

Matthew nodded in understanding, joining her on the couch and pulling her into his arms, “I’m sorry.”

“I hate that things are this way,” she said, settling against him.

“I’m sure he does too, but he has so many responsibilities, I don’t think he quite knows how to juggle them all,” Matthew said quietly.

Mia sighed, “I know, but it’d be nice if he made more of an effort with us.”

“It would,” Matthew said. “Come on, let’s go to bed. This will look so much better in the morning.”

She followed when he pulled her up from the couch, flicking the lights on the tree off and plunging them into darkness.

***

Satinalia arrived quickly, far more quickly than Mia would have liked. She still had gifts to wrap, and presents to put under the tree. Rosie had come home from college just the day before and even Branson had brought a bag from his place so he could stay at her house for the holiday. Rosie had been so helpful with Clara and Liam and keeping them out of her hair, she felt as though she might actually get all of the things done that she needed to.

Most of the food was nearly done, and Branson had set the table. He’d confused where the utensils went, but Mia knew that she was the only one who would notice, so she didn’t say anything.

She was at the stove making the stuffing when Matthew came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her.

“Hello darling,” he said as he kissed her neck.

She leaned back against him, “Hello.”

“How are you?” he asked.

She sighed, “I’m fine.” Mia hadn’t talked about this with anyone but him. Branson and Rosie both had refrained from asking if Cullen was coming. Mia was sure that was the only reason she’d kept it together so far. Branson had double checked with her the number of place settings, and Mia was sure that was as close to asking as he would get.

His arms tightened around her, “I’m sorry about Cullen.”

Mia shrugged, “I am too.”

“I’d try to give him the benefit of the doubt. There has to be more going on in Kirkwall than we know,” Matthew said.

“I just want to be mad at him,” she confessed, moving out of her husband’s arms.

“Be mad,” Matthew said, kissing her forehead, “but be nice when he calls today.”

“If he calls,” she muttered.

He had promised, but how many promises had he broken over the last few years? After mom died she had thought they’d had an understanding, that they wouldn’t abandon each other. And yet, Cullen had left. Maker knew she hadn’t been kind about it, but she was mad that he got to go off and leave. That he got to go deal with his grief that way while she’d had to go back home and take care of their younger siblings, and their father too. She’d tried to forgive him for that, but when she thought about it too much, it still hurt. It had been her choice to make, she reminded herself. And she still wouldn’t change it.

She transferred the stuffing into a bowl and set it on the table, picking up a squirming Liam to place him in his high chair. Rosie was bringing Clara around to the other side of the table, while Matthew brought the ham over from the counter. Mia placed a kiss on Liam’s head as she put his bib on him and sat down.

“It looks awesome, Mia,” Branson said, running a hand through his hair.

Rosie nodded, “It really does.”

“And you even made me green bean casserole,” Matthew said with a peck to her cheek. Mia looked at the casserole, a bit of sadness welling up inside her. It was also Cullen’s favorite.

“We should pray before it gets cold,” she said, pushing all thoughts of her missing brother from her mind. It was Satinalia, and they needed to celebrate.

They had just begun loading their plates when there was a knock at the door.

“Who could that be?” Mia looked at Matthew in confusion.

“Last minute package?” Matthew shrugged. He was trying to get Liam to try some sweet potato so she stood up and walked to the door.

She pulled open the door, surprised anyone was out in the bitter cold weather that had settled in since the storm earlier in the week. Standing on the porch was her younger brother, looking so tired, but he was there. His jacket looked a little threadbare, and his hair was a mess of errant curls that he reached up to tame with the hand that wasn’t holding the bag slung over his shoulder.

He’d come for Satinalia.

“You could have just said you were coming,” she leaned against the open door crossing her arms. She wasn’t going to let him off quite so easily. She may be thrilled to see him, but she was still mad.  

Cullen managed a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes, “Where’s the fun in that?”

Suddenly it seemed cruel to make him feel worse.

“Come on in,” she said, stepping aside to let him through.

But Cullen didn’t walk inside, instead he dropped his bag and wrapped his arms around her. She swallowed down the tears that sprung to her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.

She nodded, “Welcome home.”

And she waited for him to say that it wasn’t his home, but instead he let her go and said, “Thank you.”

She lead the way to the dining room, “It’s a Satinalia miracle, look who just arrived.”

Cullen hung back for a moment, as his siblings took in his presence. It was Matthew who spoke first, “Well look at that. We better get a place set for you Cullen.” Her brother looked relieved to still be welcome. Rosie beamed up at him and made space next to her.

Bran looked to Mia, “I guess I should have set another one after all.”

She scowled at him, but everyone else laughed.

It wasn’t perfect, but they were together. It was enough for now.


	4. Worse For Wear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anon prompted question about what Cullen was like when he came home from Kirkwall. Branson’s POV.

Denerim was a two hour drive from South Reach through two winding canyons and along the feet of towering mountains the rest of the way. It wasn’t an unpleasant drive, though Branson believed it was prettier in the spring. By this late in summer the foothills were browning sagebrush and the occasional scrub oak. Higher up the hills were the patches of green that had managed to survive the hot dry summer. And Branson knew that in just two short months that the trees along the ridgelines would turn into bright yellows and reds before shedding their leaves.

The drive to Denerim wasn’t one he made often, but he suspected that would change now that Cullen had moved there. And bought a house.

The suddenness of that decision was still troubling him. Cullen was the sort of person that thought through decisions for a long time. He always took a long time considering and strategizing. He was not the sort of person who got a job offer in a brand new career and then bought a house the same week. It was the impulsiveness that was worrying Branson more than anything else, but there were other things that were concerning. Like how he’d called Mia just two days before arriving on her doorstep, only staying a week or so before going to Denerim. He wouldn’t talk about what had happened in Kirkwall, but Bran had read enough of the news reports to make a guess. The attacks, the rioting, they’d been all over the news. Mia had been worried sick, constantly checking updates, calling Cullen every time there was breaking news. And then suddenly, when things were at their very worst, they’d calmed back down. Mia had begged Cullen to come back home, but apparently he was then the most senior person left and couldn’t. Not until a few weeks ago anyway.

Bran had tried asking once, as they sat out on the back porch at Mia’s under the summer night sky, about Meredith and how she’d declared martial law even though she had no authority to do so. He knew Cullen had stood against her, known that his brother had done his best to protect people, kept as many people alive and safe as he could. But Cullen wouldn’t talk about it. So Bran stopped asking. And then Cullen called him up, out of the blue.

Cullen had never once asked him for anything. Not once. So when he’d gotten the phone call from him about buying a house and if he could help, he’d been too surprised to say anything but yes. So there he was, driving from South Reach to Denerim to help his brother fix up his house. The whole thing certainly would seem normal to anyone else, but it was anything but.  

He turned down the sleepy suburban street that matched the address Cullen had given him. The road was lined with tall trees and green lawns. The houses were all older, but it was a nice neighborhood. Seemed quiet, something he suspected that his brother desperately needed.

His truck rumbled up into the driveway. He could see Cullen standing in the garage, amongst too few boxes to fill the size of the house he’d just purchased. The way he stood was a little slumped, as if fighting gravity’s pull was too much work. Branson realized Cullen didn’t have a lot of things. Not that he was one to talk, he’d moved into the apartment above his carpentry workshop with nothing more than a couch and a t.v., but he’d always pictured Cullen with more. Perhaps there was more already in the house, but he doubted it.

Cullen was thinner than even the last time he’d seen him. Bran saw it most in his face, in the sharp jut of his cheekbones. There were dark smudges under his eyes, like it had been weeks - no months - since he’d had a decent night’s rest. And his eyes looked old, tired. As if he had seen too much in too short of a time. He’d looked much the same way when he’d arrived from Kirkwall a few weeks ago, and Branson had foolishly thought that perhaps all his brother needed was some time to rest, to be away from the mess of a city that had worn him down.

Branson got out of his truck, the door squeaking as he shut it and walked into the garage to join his brother. Cullen didn’t smile as he walked out of the garage to meet him.

“What do you think?” Cullen asked by way of greeting, gesturing to the house.

It was an older two story, pale blue despite the worn paint. The upstairs likely wasn’t more than a room or two with the way the roof sloped, though it appeared that it might be a little larger than it appeared from the front. The covered porch ran along the whole front of the house, a few shingles missing here and there. The several white-shuttered windows were visible from the front, and two hazelnut trees flanked the house with an overgrown expanse of grass spread out between them. But the roof looked solid enough. And it looked structurally sound, so he hoped the outside didn’t need much beyond some paint and touch up work. It was going to be the inside that needed the most work, Bran was sure of it.

“It’s seen better days,” Branson replied, thinking that his brother had too.

Cullen nodded, “I think we can fix it up though.”

Branson walked to back to his truck and pulled his green duffle bag from the back. The bed was packed with tools and anything he’d thought he might need. Branson motioned towards the house, “Well, give me the grand tour and we’ll see what we can do.”

So Cullen led him around.

Branson was only half paying attention to the house, he couldn’t stop wondering about his brother, and what had brought him to the point of looking as he did. Even his voice sounded tired as he spoke. It was in his gait as he walked, as if he wasn’t sure of his steps. Branson switched his attention back to the house. The kitchen needed the most work, the whole place needed new flooring and carpet, and a good paint job. The stairs creaked like they were out of some horror film, but that would be easy enough to fix.

“Well?” Cullen asked, looking at him with concern and some wild hope shuttered in his eyes.

“How many weeks you have until you’ve got to start working at that school?” Branson leaned against a wall.

Cullen thought for a moment, “Three.”

“Then we better get started,” Branson said, throwing his bag to his brother and walking back out to his truck to get his tools.  
***

Branson realized a few days in that Cullen didn’t sleep. He heard him up and about, rattling around in the middle of the night. He was trying to be quiet, but Branson still heard him. He’d crept out of his room on the main floor one night to see what he was doing. Cullen was bent over the work table, back hunched, shirt hanging loose, too loose, his weight loss more apparent in it. He was pouring over the plans for the kitchen, making adjustments and remeasuring everything. Draining the coffee mug on the table as he worked.

When Branson woke up the next morning he’d found Cullen still there, making adjustments to plans.

“Up early,” Branson commented, voice hoarse.

“Just wanted to get an early start,” Cullen replied. Not quite a lie, but not the truth either. “Want some coffee?”

“Sure,” Branson had accepted it from him and then they’d gotten to work.

There wasn’t much food there either, Branson had noticed it the second day. Cullen had taken him out for dinner the day previous, but he realized that his brother had almost nothing at the house. What was more troubling was that his brother didn’t seem to realize it was a problem until he brought it up. Cullen had been surprised, so surprised when he’d brought it up. So Bran had offered to stay working so Cullen could go grocery shopping, and though he seemed a little lost at the prospect he came back with plenty of food, which Branson found himself to be almost the only one eating. Cullen ate when Branson reminded him to do so, otherwise not at all.

The not eating had been the tipping point for Bran. He went to the hardware store alone and then he sat in the parking lot debating whether he should call his sister for a good long while. Mia and Cullen had always seemed to understand each other in a way that Bran never had. Maybe it was the age difference, maybe it was how things were when their mother had died and Cullen left, but Branson had always struggled with him the most out of all his siblings. He supposed it was partially his fault too. Can’t quite get put all the blame on someone for not calling if he wasn’t calling either. They talked on birthdays, major holidays, not a whole lot more than that. Mia had always been better at getting through, keeping up. He sighed and dialed her number.  

“Hey? How goes the remodeling?” Mia answered, voice bright.

He sighed, “The remodeling is fine.”

He could feel his sister tense on the other end of the line, “Are you two not getting along? What’s up?”

“Something’s wrong with Cullen, Mia. He’s not okay,” he said, words somehow heavier than he thought they would be. Saying them aloud made it all real.  

“Tell me.”

“He doesn’t eat, I don’t think he had anything at the house beyond coffee until I mentioned it. And you should have seen his face, like he was shocked there was no food. Like he’d forgotten he needed to eat. And he’s not sleeping. I thought he looked bad when he came back from Kirkwall. It’s worse now,” he explained.

He could hear the worry in Mia’s voice, “Have you tried talking to him about it? There’s a reason for all of this, I just don’t know what it is.”

“No, what do I say? I don’t think he even realizes how bad it all looks. There’s something going on here that he’s not telling us. I don’t know what to do,” he said. There it was though, Cullen was keeping something from them. It was obvious now that he realized it.

Mia immediately jumped into planning mode, “I’ll be there this weekend. Matthew can keep an eye on Clara and Liam and I’ll see if Rosie can come too.”

“I’ll just do what I can to keep it together until then,” Bran replied.

“It’ll be fine,” but it didn’t quite sound like she meant it.

***

When Branson had returned from the store, he couldn’t find Cullen. He wasn’t working in the kitchen or anywhere else on the main floor. His car was still there, so he couldn’t be far.

“Cullen?” he called.

He rushed up the stairs, taking them two at a time.

“Cullen?”

His mind flew through many scenarios, but did not quite ever go through the one he found himself face to face with. Cullen was sprawled out on the floor of the upstairs bathroom, pale and sweating, the whole room smelling of sick.

Branson paused in the doorway, whispering, “Cullen?”

When his eyes cracked open it was like he was noticing he was there for the first time, “In the cupboard. I can’t get to my meds.”

Branson opened the cupboard over the sink, only to find there were three prescription bottles lined up along the shelf. His heart sank. His brother was definitely keeping something from him. “Which one?”

“Longer white pills,” he said, voice cracking, and full of pain.

Branson pulled out a pair of pills like the label said and then handed them to his brother. The drug name wasn’t one he recognized, though he wasn’t sure he wanted to admit he read it in hopes that he did. Cullen swallowed the pills gratefully, but didn’t move.

Bran leaned against the far wall and sank down to the floor, eyes never leaving his brother. “Cullen what the hell is wrong with you?”

“It’s nothing,” his brother replied, only half convincingly.

“Bull shit,” Branson said.

His brother was silent for a long time. As if he was fighting with himself over whether to tell him the truth. Then at long last he rubbed his eyes and sighed, “Lyrium withdrawal.”

Branson felt his eyes go wide, knew the surprise was written all over his face, “What?” He knew enough about lyrium to know to stay very far away from it.

“I was on lyrium in the army, it’s normal. But I’m not taking it anymore.”

“How long?”

Cullen stilled, “Since I tendered my resignation.”

“And you weren’t going to tell us?” Branson asked, pinching the bridge of his nose. He supposed he shouldn’t be surprised, but he was. Cullen had never been good about keeping him or his siblings in the loop, why did he expect him to tell them about this?

“What’s there to tell? I was on lyrium, now I’m not. The worst of the symptoms have subsided. It’s just these headaches and nausea now. Should be done with by the time I start teaching,” Cullen said.

Cullen sounded so sure, so convinced. Branson admittedly didn’t know much about lyrium addiction, but he knew it was bad. So bad. And that his brother was acting like it very much was not.

“And the sleeping?” he stared at the rug on floor, not really sure he wanted to know the answer.  

Cullen looked away, clearly surprised, “What do you mean?”

Branson didn’t look away despite his brother’s eyes being fixed to the ceiling, “Is the not sleeping part of it too?”

Cullen shook his head, “No, that’s not part of it.”

Bran knew his brother well enough to know that was the end of the conversation. So he nodded and stood. “I’m going to go keep working. No rush, just join when you’re up to it. Mia called, her and Rosie wanted to come see our progress this weekend.”

Not quite a lie, but not the truth either. He was surprised at the ease of it.

***

When Mia and Rosie arrived on Saturday the kitchen had been completely gutted. He and Cullen had moved the fridge into the garage, which turned out to not be quite as inconvenient as Bran thought it would be. They were in and out of the garage enough it didn’t matter.

Cullen still wasn’t sleeping, but he also wasn’t trying to hide it anymore. Branson just kept repeating the mantra that Mia would know what to do, that Mia would fix this. She just needed to be there.

Mia hid her worry when she saw Cullen behind tense eyes, but Branson could see it was there. He suspected Cullen could too, but he wondered if he was too exhausted to care. Cullen didn’t even protest when Mia lamented the food situation in the house and planned to go grocery shopping.

Rosie was much less postured about the whole thing. She looked at Cullen with unrestrained concern and kept looking to Mia to see if she was going to say something. They’d brought lunch with them, and so he and Cullen stopped what they were doing and gathered around the small table that was functioning both as a workbench and a place to eat.

Cullen worked to clear it, while Branson pulled up two more chairs from the garage. With the introduction of food, a certain order asserted itself between them. They made small talk, mostly about the house, about Cullen’s new job, and what had been happening in South Reach.

They fell into an uncomfortable silence after a while, and Branson tried to focus on his food. It was easier than trying to come up with ways to fill the silence.

“I know Bran told you,” Cullen said between mouthfuls of food.

Mia set her fork down, “He did.”

Cullen sighed, “Could all of you stop paying so much attention to my eating?” Branson glanced away, realizing he hadn’t been the only one making sure Cullen ate.

“We’re just worried, you didn’t say anything and then we get here and see how bad things are,” Rosalie said.

Cullen’s jaw clenched, “Things aren’t bad. They’re fine.”

Mia scowled, but her voice was deadly quiet, “Oh? And you look like you’re wasting away, but everything is fine?”

“I am not wasting away!”

Mia flinched at the sudden outburst.

“Have you looked in the mirror lately?” Rosie asked quietly.

Cullen glared at her, “Stop. Everything is fine. I’m going to be fine.”

“It’s not fine!” Mia said, voice raised.

“You have no idea what you’re even talking about, Mia,” Cullen said.

She crossed her arms, “Well please enlighten me then. I’m all ears.”

His two older siblings didn’t look away from each other, and Branson wondered which would be the most stubborn of the two. Which was the most likely to win this battle. If he had to put money on it, it’d be Mia.

Cullen looked away first and stood, “I’m going to get some work done.”

Mia didn’t let him get far before she was following him out to the garage, voice a shrill echo even when the door slammed behind them both.

“It’s so lovely to get the family together,” Branson said before taking a bite.

Rosie didn’t laugh, “He’s being ridiculous.”

“Of course he is.” He could hear the rise and fall of Mia and Cullen’s voices continue, and he and Rosalie ate their food in silence.

***

Mia and Rosie left later that night. Mia and Cullen had stayed in the garage a long time, long enough that he’d gotten back to work and had given Rosie instructions for how to remove the tile on the counters. When his two older siblings emerged from the garage, they’d both seemed to have run out of fight. Mia left to go get more food, and Cullen had silently resumed his work. It was Rosie that had coaxed Cullen back out of himself, talking about history and what his plans were for teaching. He’d hugged both his sisters a little more tightly than necessary as they’d left.

Cullen sank down into one of the chairs in the kitchen once they left, head in his hands, “You didn’t say you were the one who called Mia.”

Branson crossed his arms and leaned against the counter, he had no plans to deny it, “What should I have done?”

Cullen looked up at him, “I don’t know.”

“I was - am worried,” Branson said.

“Mia said as much,” Cullen said, his voice held a defeated tone to it. He ran his hand through his hair, “I’m sorry.”

It was the only apology he’d heard from his brother since their mother had died. He’d never apologized for joining the army, for leaving, for almost not attending their father’s funeral. He might have apologized to Mia once, last Christmas but Branson wasn’t sure.

“If you could be a little bit less like a zombie I think we’d all feel a lot better,” Branson replied.

Cullen chuckled darkly, “I’ll keep that in mind.”

He stood from the chair and began walking towards the stairs. Branson called after him, “Where are you going?”

“To bed. I’m tired,” Cullen said without looking back.

He didn’t know for sure if his brother slept, but he didn’t hear him up in the night.

***

The house changed over the next few weeks. They’d put in wood flooring on most of the first floor, and Bran had spent an entire afternoon fixing the squeaky stairs. He’d had to test each one, figure out where the squeaking was and then fix it accordingly. Once he had though, the stairs were good as new and ready for carpeting.

They were working every day, all day. Until one afternoon when Cullen ran a hand through his mussed hair, and set his tools down.

“What if we took the rest of the day off?” he asked.

Branson was more than a little surprised, “And do what?”

“Rent a movie, not work in this void-taken kitchen for a few hours,” Cullen scratched at the beard that was beginning to grow. Branson had challenged him to a beard growing match, mostly kidding. But he’d forgotten his brother was very competitive. They’d both refrained from shaving the last couple weeks, and Branson felt like his was finally getting out of the perma-itch phase.

Branson sat up from where he’d been working from under the sink, “Sounds like a plan to me.”

They left everything just as it was. Cullen bought more pizza than they really needed, and they rented a terrible looking action movie.

It felt so normal, sitting in the living room, still without a couch, watching a movie together. The movie was awful, the plot line was basically non-existent, all fast cars and pretty girls. They talked through a lot of it, only half paying attention, beers in hand.

Cullen kept looking at the walls, frowning. Finally Bran sighed, “I know we said we’d not talk about the house at all, but what are you looking at?”

Cullen was silent for a while, as if imagining something, “What if most of the walls in here were bookshelves?”

Bran looked around the room, imagining it. His brother hadn’t asked for much beyond the bare essentials to be done to the house. Functioning kitchen, good flooring, keep the whole thing as open as possible, that sort of thing.

So Bran smiled, “Yeah, I think we can do that.”

Cullen looked a  little shocked, “Really?”

“Easy enough,” he said, shrugging. And he didn’t say so to Cullen, but he was glad that his brother was asking for something, envisioning something for himself.

Cullen leaned back against the pillows he’d made out blankets on the floor, “Alright.”

Two mornings later Cullen had meetings at the school, so Branson set to work while Cullen got ready. Bran was measuring and hanging shelves for the living room when Cullen came down the stairs.

He was dressed in a button down shirt, all tucked in and everything. He’d shaved, and he actually looked a little better than he had when Branson had arrived. He’d tamed his hair too, though Branson didn’t understand why he bothered, and his cheeks looked less hollow. But the bit that Branson really couldn’t believe was the glasses.

“Since when do you wear glasses? Or are you just trying to look all teacher-like?” Branson teased, shaking his head.

Cullen rubbed the back of his neck, “I have a hard time seeing at a distance. It’s not terrible, I can still drive and everything, but they help.”

“Alright, four-eyes,” Branson grinned.

“How original,” Cullen drawled, rolling his eyes, “I’ve got to go, I’ll be back in a few hours.”

“Try not to give anyone detention,” Branson said as Cullen slung a messenger back over his shoulder.

“There aren’t any students there today, it’s just teacher meetings,” Cullen explained.

Bran nodded, “Yes, it’s also called a sense of humor. Perhaps you should try to find one if you’re going to be dealing with high school kids all day.”

Cullen glared, “I have a sense of humor.”

“Could have fooled me,” Branson smiled.

Cullen didn’t dignify that with a response and walked out the door, but Branson was more relieved than he could say. Cullen was going to be alright, and once the house was finished he’d go back to South Reach, perhaps not worry-free, but at least knowing things were improving.


	5. What's Your Problem?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mara confronts Cullen about his behavior towards her. Both Mara and Cullen’s POV. AKA The prompt that started the whole damn fic.

She took a deep breath before she walked into his classroom. It’d been weeks now, and this wasn’t going on any longer. They were adults and they were going to talk about this and solve whatever problem he had with her, and then they were going to work together and it was going to fine.

She nearly lost her resolve before she walked into his classroom with as much confidence as she could muster. His classroom was organized and clean, books lining the counter on one end and history posters hung evenly spaced out along the far wall. Even the desks were in perfectly straight rows.

He looked up from his desk and seemed surprised to see her striding into the room. His blue button down shirt was pushed up to the elbows and he’d set his glasses down while he’d been working on the grading on his desk. He put them on and ran a hand through his hair and looked so damn attractive she cursed whatever Gods might be listening.

“We need to talk,” she said, voice more even that she thought it would be.

He looked at her quizzically, “Um…okay.”

She gathered all of that courage she’d had that brought her into his classroom, “You want to tell me what your issue with me is? You look at me like I’m a freaking pariah during faculty meetings, can’t seem to say more than a few words to me at a time, and I just want to know why.”

As soon as the words left her lips she got all riled up again, courage no longer needed, she was seething. But the man had the gall to lean back in his chair and look surprised.

“Are you serious?”

“Uh, yeah. You’ve been a jerk to me since I got here,” she said resolve faltering. She hadn’t made this all up in her head? Right? Even Varric had agreed something was off.

Cullen’s mouth was a thin line, “I’m sorry, did you expect me to put up a banner and organize a lunch in your honor or something?”

He was mocking her now and that just set her off, “Of course not, but you know…a ‘hi’ in the hallway every now and again wouldn’t kill you.”

“Well I’d probably not do it friendly enough and then you’d come in here and yell at me,” Cullen said, his face was emotionless but she could have sworn she saw amusement dancing in his eyes.

She didn’t say anything instead shook her head and stalked towards the door.

“Why do you care so much anyway?” he called after her.

She stopped and turned back, “It doesn’t matter, go ahead and hate me. I don’t care.”

Mara wished that her classroom was farther away from his when she got into her room. She felt simultaneously embarrassed and furious. What the hell did she think she was doing when she walked in there to confront him?

She definitely hadn’t been expecting _that._

***

Cullen sat at his desk in shock at what had just transpired and feeling a little gutted.

“She thinks I hate her,” he whispered incredulously.

All this time he’d been concerned that his bumbling and his awkwardness around her had been so transparent she she would surely figure out that he had feelings for her. Her presence always sent his thoughts scattering. And when she was angry apparently his common sense abandoned him as well.

He buried his head in his hands, that was a really good opportunity to have told her. To assure her that he didn’t hate her. Maybe even ask her to get coffee or something.

Instead he’d just pissed her off even more, and now she was convinced he hated her. Phenomenal.

But why did she care so much? She hadn’t answered the question.

Mara was not a vain person, so why was she so concerned with how he felt about her?

A bubble of hope formed in his chest. Maybe there was something to that. Maybe.


	6. Reminders and Anniversaries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anon prompted question about how Cullen told Mara about his parents. Mara’s POV.

Mara hadn’t seen Cullen all day. He hadn’t met her in the parking lot that morning as was becoming their usual routine. She found herself immensely disappointed when she saw his car already there, the lights in his classroom already on. It was silly to be so upset about something so small, but she looked forward to those few minutes every morning.

After school, she’d gone up to her teacher box in the faculty room to get her mail, she noticed Cullen hadn’t retrieved his and it was as good as an excuse as any to go see him. She emptied his box and walked back down stairs and straight to his classroom.

He was sitting at his desk as she entered, he was talking on his phone to someone. He’d abandoned his glasses and kept rubbing his eyes. She paused in his doorway, unsure if she should stay.

“Mia, it’s the middle of the week, I can’t be there tonight, I already told you. I can come this weekend, but that’s the best I can do,” he said exasperatedly.

Cullen sat silent for a moment, listening. He noticed her then and held up a finger, clearly asking her to wait for a moment.

He sighed, “I’m fine and yes, though I’m sure you’ll try to make up for any imagined neglectance on my part when I see you.”

“I love you too,” he said quietly as he hung up the phone. Her stomach sank at the words, she had been pretty sure that he was unattached, but she began to question.

Cullen set his phone down and pinched the bridge of his nose, “My sister.”

She immediately relaxed, “Oh, I’m sorry? I noticed you hadn’t gotten your mail today, so I grabbed it.”

He offered her a strained smile, “That was nice of you.”

She came further into his room, setting the mail on his desk, “Everything okay?”

He didn’t look at her, instead played with his glasses he’d set on his desk, “It’s the anniversary of my father’s passing.”

“Oh,” was all she managed.

“The day of is always difficult, then Mia wants us all to be together, which is fine but they all live two hours away. And when I don’t come on the day it always seems to drag some old argument up,” Cullen said.

She understood, better than he knew. She often took the anniversary of her parent’s deaths off, spent time alone and away from people. It was difficult even all these years later.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“I almost didn’t go home for the funeral. Things in Kirkwall were bad, and being in Honnleath was too hard after my mother died,” Cullen admitted.

She wasn’t sure what to say, except that she knew the feeling. He continued, “It’s been seven years since he passed, twelve for my mother. Somedays I don’t even think about it, them. And other days there are reminders and then it sort of hits me all at once, and I think about all the things they’ve missed. All the things I miss,” Cullen glanced up to her, amber eyes guilt-ridden and sad.

She thought about telling him then, how she knew the reminders were hard. How every time the rain fell in heavy sheets she thought about that night. How sometimes when she rode in the car with other people her whole chest became tight and it got hard to breathe. How every picture with her parents lay carefully wrapped in a box that was never opened, but moved from place to place. This wasn’t about her. She held his gaze, “I’m sorry, is there anything I can do?”

Cullen put his glasses back in place, “Not really, but thank you.”

She leaned back on the desk, “At least you have siblings to worry about you though.”

He chuckled, “Oh yes, Mia’s constant nagging is a wonderful source of comfort.”

“She does it because she cares,” Mara said.

“I know,” Cullen nodded, “Thanks for letting me unload on you.”

She pulled at the sleeve of her cardigan, “Anytime. I hope your trip home is good.”

She started walking towards the door, to give Cullen some privacy. His spoke behind her, words quiet, “Would you…um…do you think…”

She glanced back, heart hammering, expectantly, “Yes?”

He rubbed the back of his neck, and didn’t meet her eyes, “You could cover the last bit of my fifth hour on Friday? I’ll want to get on the road and try to beat traffic.”

She felt embarrassed to have thought he might ask her to come with him. Silly.

She nodded, “Of course.”


	7. Of Roses and Kissing Day Scrooges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For @thesecondsealwrites’s Kissing Day celebration. Cullen and Mara’s POV.

There was a certain electric energy to the school that day that hadn’t been there previously. Posters lined the hallways advertising purchasing roses that the Key Club would deliver to one’s crush. Announcements had been made to remind students to wear red, and as the weather chilled and the day approached, most students seemed to have hope that their sweetheart might appear.

Cullen hated it. He hated the reminders to wear red, and the commerciality of the whole thing. It was just a holiday created by the companies to try and get you to purchase useless things. Give out candy, buy your significant other jewelry, drop off love notes. It was all a waste of time and money.

Not to mention it made students a nightmare to deal with.

And yet, there was something about it that was utterly contagious that year. He’d be lying if he said his thoughts hadn’t been drifting toward a certain English teacher as the day approached. How might she react if he gave her something for the holiday? He and Mara had somehow figured out a way around that initial awkwardness and misunderstandings to become friends, and he wondered if they were approaching something more.

The lines always felt a little bit blurred where Mara was concerned. They were friends. She’d helped him when he had a migraine, and they met up most mornings on the way into school. She often stopped by his classroom just to chat and when he did the same she seemed incredibly happy. During Homecoming week they’d had that dinner together, and Cullen thought just maybe there was something else there.

It was ridiculous, she made him interested in Kissing Day of all things.

It was a crisp, beautiful fall day. And while he’d made sure not to come even close to wearing the color of the day he wasn’t surprised to see Mara meeting him in the parking lot wearing a bright red sweater.

“You dressed up for Kissing Day? Really?” he teased.

She smirked, “I should have known you were a grouch about it. I even have candy for the kids!”

“You do?”

“Mr. Rutherford, the lamest teacher of them all,” she joked.

“Hey!” he mocked offense.

“Oh and I won’t see you at lunch,” Mara explained, “I’m helping Key Club deliver roses.”

He tried to mask his disappointment, “That’s nice of you to help.” Lunch had become something he looked forward to for a chance to spend more time with her. They often sat next to each other in Dorian’s classroom, having conversations aside from everyone else. Dorian had teased him about it mercilessly, and yet Cullen couldn’t find it in him to care.

“Dagna said she’d need all the help she could get, we were putting roses into the plastic holders until almost eight last night,” she said. He noticed it then, the clear signs of exhaustion in her green eyes, the slight bags under them.

“Wow, did the kids order a lot of roses?” he asked.

Mara laughed, “Nearly 200 of them.”

“Maker’s breath, why are they wasting their money on such a stupid holiday?” he realized it was probably the wrong thing to say as soon as the words came out of his mouth. At least Kissing Day wasn’t as big of a deal in Denerim as it was in Kirkwall. There weren’t in parades in Denerim, and thank the Maker for that, but it was still bigger than he thought it had the right to be.

“Well aren’t you the Kissing Day Scrooge,” Mara shook her head.

He opened the door for her, “I never understood why we needed to have a whole holiday dedicated to buying your loved one things, why do we need a holiday for that?” He had other reasons too. His mother had always thought it silly too. Oh sure, she baked cookies for it every year, but still made sure her children knew that one didn’t need a holiday to express their love. Rosie had always been frustrated by that attitude, but he couldn’t help but agree with it.

“I think it’s sort of nice,” Mara shrugged, “Maybe it’s a little silly, but we need something before Satinalia to look forward to.”

They were to their classroom doors by this time, and Cullen tried not to be disappointed since that was likely the most he’d see her that day, “Have a good day.”

She flashed him a smile that sent his heart pounding, “You too, try not to ruin too much of the Kissing Day fun.”

***

Mara felt like she’d been on her feet all day by the time fifth hour finally came. She’d spent her lunch delivering roses and the rest of the day she’d spent half of her lesson time to teach the kids about Shakespearean love sonnets and let them take a crack at writing one themselves. Most of them couldn’t quite seem to grasp the concept of writing in iambic pentameter, but they were fun to read nonetheless.

But the day was finally drawing to a close, and she had the last fifteen minutes of her prep hour completely to herself. She stared at the single red rose on her desk. There had been several roses leftover and when Mara had asked to have one, Dagna had smiled and nodded. Dagna was already planning something devious to do with her leftover roses, she could tell by the gleam in her eye.

So Mara had carried the rose carefully back to her classroom, trying to determine if her plan was stupid. A rose would send a pretty clear message. She and Cullen had been toeing blurred lines recently. They were clearly more than friends, but they hadn’t moved beyond friendship. Not yet.

She wasn’t sure what she wanted yet, but she wanted more. And so once the bell rang and the students had cleared out of his classroom she walked over, hoping that he wouldn’t notice how nervous she was.

He was at his desk, the attendance binder he kept on the podium at the front of his room sitting open in front of him. He looked completely at ease, possibly even relieved that the day was done.

He looked up at her when she entered, and then smiled at her while he adjusted his glasses, “Hey, how was your day?”

“Busy, but I’ve got something for you,” she said, putting the rose down on his desk.

He went completely still in his chair as he looked at the rose. It was encased in the plastic container still, but his eyes seemed to go wide at the sight of it.

He rubbed the back of his neck, “Th-thank you.”

His cheeks had adopted a deep red color, and she swallowed down her own embarrassment. Oh this had been a terrible idea.

“You’re welcome,” she managed.

He was still looking at the rose as if it might spontaneously combust at any moment. That was as good a sign to retreat as any, so she took a deep breath and began walking out.

“At any rate, the Kissing Day Scrooge deserved a little something,” she said over her shoulder, trying to sound as casual as possible.

He chuckled a little as she walked out, but then very quietly she heard him say her name. She paused in the doorway and looked back at him. His eyes were soft, and there was something else there she couldn’t quite place.

“Happy Kissing Day,” he said.

She smiled, “Happy Kissing Day, Cullen.”

A few weeks later when Mara spent the night at Cullen’s house, she found a single rose on the windowsill on his kitchen. It was withered and drooping out of the cup it was in, but she was sure it was the same one.


	8. Rock Climbing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cullen and Mara go rock climbing. Mara and Cullen’s POV.

“Pick up your phone, pick up your phone,” Cullen said as he paced back and forth in his bedroom. He was half dressed, and realized just two minutes ago that he had no idea what to wear. Mara had invited him rock climbing yesterday, and he’d been so excited that he hadn’t really thought about any of the practicalities.

Like what in the void to wear.

But if anyone would know, it would be Dorian. Dorian knew everything when it came to clothes, and if he didn’t know, Bull would. Finally Dorian answered.

“Kaffas, what the hell Cullen, it’s eight in the morning, on Saturday,” Dorian groaned on the other end of the line.

“I need your help, and then you can go back to your beauty rest,” Cullen said quickly.

“What do you need?” Dorian asked voice dripping with annoyance, voice hoarse.

“I’m going rock climbing with Mara, she’s on her way here and I have no idea what to wear,” Cullen said.

Dorian laughed, “So you called me?”

Cullen sighed, “Yes, so tell me what to do.”

“No jeans, they’re not comfortable enough, and no basketball shorts either, unless you want her knowing exactly what you’ve got going on,” Dorian explained, “Look, harnesses on men are not the most flattering things for that area. Wear pants that are comfortable, but structured. And one of those nice tight t-shirts that show off your arms.”

“I am not wearing a tight shirt,” Cullen said.

“Whatever, can I go back to bed now?” Dorian asked.

“Yes, thank you,” Cullen replied.

“Maybe you actually want her getting a good teaser of the goods though, in which case wear the basketball shorts,” Dorian drawled.

Cullen ended the call instead of replying.

He’d just pulled on some khaki work pants that were hopefully what Dorian had described when he heard her car pull up in the driveway. He’d grabbed a jacket as well, unsure of what to expect of the weather. He realized that she hadn’t given him any indication of where they would be going. Mara hadn’t given him much information at all, just a time to be ready.

The morning was just the slightest bit crisp as he got into her car. She was taking a drink from her coffee, hair pulled back into a ponytail.

“Morning,” she smiled, “I got you coffee.”

There was another cup in the cupholder and he smiled back, “Thank you.”

They drove in comfortable silence, both of them sipping their coffee. It wasn’t awkward though, it was comfortable, and Cullen appreciated that.

It wasn’t a long drive to the tall building Mara parked in front of. It was in a part of town he wasn’t terribly familiar with, and Cullen wondered what they were doing there. Shouldn’t they be going to the mountains, where there were rocks to climb? She was the expert though, and when she parked he got out of the car without question.

She reached into the back seat to pull out a backpack full of gear, some shoes were hanging off a carabiner. He felt a little bit lame with nothing to carry, so he offered to take her empty cup and throw it away as they walked into the building.

He noticed the smell first, it smelled like cleaner, sweat, and chalk. A heavily tattooed elf behind the counter smiled at Mara as she entered.

“Well hey there, you need a belay partner today?” he asked, Cullen noted the hope in his voice.

Mara shook her head, “I brought one with me today. He’s going to need a release form and some gear. I’ve got an extra harness, but he needs shoes.”

The elf behind the counter gave Cullen a good look over, “Well then, you ever been rock climbing before?”

Cullen shook his head.

“Well Mara here is awesome, so you’ll be in good hands,” he smiled at Mara instead of him. He handed Cullen a tablet where he had to fill out information while Mara and the elf chatted. He’d picked up that the elf’s name was Rhett, and he was clearly interested in Mara. It bothered him more than he wanted to admit.

“I was out at Rock Canyon this week,” Rhett explained, “it was awesome. We did Bad Bananas, you should have come.”

“Oh that sounds fun, but you know how hard school nights are for me,” she replied.

“Yeah yeah, ever the teacher,” Rhett replied. Then to Cullen, “Shoe size?”

“10,” Cullen said. Rhett disappeared into a room behind the desk and came out with some faded red shoes, there was a faint dusting of chalk on them that looked rather permanent, but mostly they looked uncomfortable.“Let me know if you need a different fit.”

Mara had already paid for his admission before he could protest, and then she led him through the glass doors into the rest of the building. Rock walls towered above them, colorful pieces lined the walls in patterns that couldn’t be accidental. The walls were so tall that looking up at them made Cullen’s knees wobble a little bit. The gym was mostly empty, just a few other climbers were there, which was why Mara had picked the early hour no doubt.

“This way,” Mara cocked her head towards an area with benches.

“I didn’t realize we were coming to a climbing gym,” he admitted. The floor beneath his feet was squishy, and it made him feel a little bit like he was bouncing as he walked.

Mara laughed as she set down her backpack on the bench, “You really thought that I’d take you out to the mountains you first time?”

“Apparently,” he mumbled.

“Please don’t take offense, but you’ve never belayed anyone before and doing so for the first time outside where it’s far more dangerous isn’t my idea of a good time. Maybe next time,” she said gently.

“That makes sense,” Cullen said honestly. He’d been so totally unsure what to expect, but being in the gym it seemed like the most obvious thing in the world.

She gave him a smile as she started pulling things out of her backpack. She handed him a harness, “For you.”

It looked more than a little complicated to get on, but he decided he would do his best to figure out the complicated belts and straps.

“I could have rented you one here, but theirs are shit. They don’t have any padding, and I promise you’re going to want padding,” Mara said as she set her own harness out.

He stepped into what he desperately hoped were the leg holes of his harness and pulled it up, threading the waist strap through the buckle. He thought he’d done a pretty good job, and realized that Dorian was right, harnesses definitely framed that area quite awkwardly.

Mara examined his work before she knelt down in front of him. Cullen fought to keep his breathing even, unsure of what she was doing. He glanced up to the tall wall in front of them and relished in the distraction that the vertigo was. She tightened the thigh straps and then doubled them back.

“Trust me you want those tight, and you need to double them all back, that way they can’t come loose. I’ll let you do your waist strap,” she said. She was so casual about it too, as if it was no big deal to help him get dressed. He wondered with a pang of jealousy if she’d ever done the same for Rhett.

“Thank you,” he managed to say.

She began putting her own harness on and he noticed her clothing for the first time. She was wearing tight black leggings and a loose purple shirt. She’d pushed the sleeves up to her elbows, but she put her own harness on with a certain level of grace.

She sat down on the bench and began pulling her light blue shoes on, “You’ll want to wear those without socks.”

“Why?” Cullen asked as he put the shoes on.

“It’s better for grip when you’re climbing, you have a sock on in your shoe and your feet will slide all around,” she explained, “Little bit gross with rental shoes, but better than losing your footing.”

Several metal pieces attached to carabiners jingled and rattled as she attached them to loops on her harness, she also attached some fingerless gloves and a chalk bag.

She held up a green and black bag for him, “Turn around.”

He did, and felt the slight tug as she hooked it into place. She also hooked another piece on one of his loops and he tried not to think too much about how close her hands were.

“Alright, you want to learn how to climb or to belay first?” Mara asked.

Cullen swallowed, “Which is most important?”

Mara laughed, “You’ll be learning both today, so both equally.”

“Um, belay I guess?” he asked.

Mara nodded and lead him to the wall directly in front of him, “So when you’re looking for climbing routes you’ll notice they have numbers from 5.4-5.12, sometimes they add letters after like a 5.11a or something. But here’s the rule, the lower the second number the easier the route. When you climb we’ll probably start you on a 5.7 because I think your height is going to make it pretty easy for you.”

“Is 5.4 the lowest?” he asked, trying to think about what him starting three levels up from that meant.

“Usually, some of the little kiddy walls are lower than that, but a 5.7 is quite respectable,” she assured him.

“Okay,” he replied.

“So since I’m the climber I pick the route, and it’s also my job to get myself tied in. I’m going to make you tie the knot though. It’s called a figure-eight,” she showed him an example on the shortest end of the rope that hung in front of them before untying it. The she showed him how to tie the knot before having him do it.

He noted that he got it first try, and she seemed decently impressed before threading the end through her harness. Then she showed him how to slip the end of the rope back through the figure-eight before pulling it tight.

“As my partner you always need to check my rope work, to make sure that I’ve tied it right. And I always check your belay set-up,” she explained.

“So how do I set up my belay?” he asked.

“Pull the blue carabiner off the loop on your right side,” she explained.

He did, noticing there was a red device attached to it, with a thin metal loop and two holes, he held it up.

“Good, that’s your ATC. Hook it to the front of your harness.”

“Okay.”

“So this is a locking carabiner, means it can’t come undone. When you belay you always need to use one of these,” she picked up the longer end of the rope as she spoke and then took his ATC and bent the rope in two as she inserted it into a hole, “You are right-handed aren’t you?”

He was too distracted by how close she was to him that he almost didn’t answer, “Oh…yeah.”

“Good, otherwise I’d have to set you up differently,” she smiled up at him. Maker, she was close. It would be so easy to close the distance, press a kiss to those upturned lips of hers. He didn’t.

“Okay, so take the loop and hook it through your locking carabiner,” she said.

He did, screwing the lock into place afterwards.

“Good job,” she smiled, and he felt like he’d just done something amazing, not just simply hooked a rope through an ATC.

She took his right hand, and he almost jumped, “Maker, your hands are cold.”

She winced, “Sorry.”

She was holding his hand though. Damn.

“This is your brake hand, I fall up there and you do this,” she had him hold the rope and pull downwards, “Never take this hand off of the rope. As I climb use your left hand to thread the rope, you can move your left hand around, but your right hand never comes off this rope, understood?”

“Understood,” he wasn’t sure he had the heart to tell her that he’d done a little bit of rappelling as part of army training, so he at least knew the basics of this aspect of it.

She let go of his hand, and he immediately wished she hadn’t.

“What’s that?” he asked, pointing to a blue device strapped to her harness.

She unhooked it and held it up, “This?”

He nodded.

“This is a gri-gri. Once you’ve mastered the ATC I’ll teach you how to use it,” she grinned and then hooked it on his harness instead of hers.

Then she turned to the wall, her blonde hair bouncing. She glanced up at the route, and then turned back to him, “So you usually check in with your belayer by saying, ‘on belay’ and if you’re ready you say ‘belay on’. Then I say ‘climbing’ and if you’re ready you say ‘climb on’.”

He smiled, “Okay.” He couldn’t remember the last time he’d smiled as he was that morning, despite being so far out of his comfort zone.

She returned his smile before facing the wall again, “On belay?”

“Belay on,” he pulled with his left hand down on the rope, tightening the line between them.

“Climbing?”

“Climb on,” he said.

Then she took off. She was all grace and fluidity as she moved between the green hand and foot holds. He worked as hard as he could to keep the rope tight on her, worrying a little as she moved a little too quickly for him to do so. He had to admit though, climbing gave him a great view of her ass. He decided then and there that he liked rock climbing and understood Rhett’s hopefulness at being Mara’s belay partner. She reached the top of the route quickly and then glanced down at him with an exhilarated look on her face.

“Now, feed the rope back through to lower me down. Gently,” she added as she leaned back.

He held fast to the rope, but began lowering her very slowly. She kicked off the wall at intervals, but mostly looked as if she might belong up there at that great height.

Once her feet were back on the ground she laughed, “Well you’re pretty good at this. Should we see if it holds true for your climbing ability?”

“Only if you promise not to make fun of me,” he replied.

She untied herself from the rope as she spoke, “Me? Never.”

He gave her a disbelieving look and she laughed, “Fine. Pick your route Rutherford.”

“You said a 5.7 would be good for me?” he asked as she stared up at the tall walls.

She was pulling on her fingerless gloves, “That or lower, your choice. But if you want to try a 5.12 more power to you.”

He picked a bright yellow 5.7. The holds all looked decently large, and he hoped that meant he could scale it without too much embarrassment. The figure-eight was already tied in on the end of the rope, so he tied himself in the same way Mara had, offering her his knot for inspection.

She was already set to belay him, “Well done.”

He was looking up at the wall, trying to mentally plan his route when she spoke, “Aren’t you going to check my belay set up?” That tight feeling in his chest eased a bit.

“Are you asking me to check you out?” he teased.

“Oh I think you already did that just fine,” she replied, and he knew then that she’d been totally aware of his staring at her ass.

He felt his face burning, “On belay?” He suddenly wanted to be as far up the wall as he possibly could.

“Belay on,” she said with amusement.

“Climbing?”

“Climb on.”

He began moving up the wall, Mara kept the rope tight on him the whole way, like a reassuring tug, promising that she was right there, he was fine. Which as good, because about half-way up the wall he chanced a look down and immediately regretted it. His legs began shaking, and he reached into his chalk bag to give his right hand more grip. The world was spinning around him slightly, he could hear his heart pounding in his ears, wouldn’t be surprised if Mara could hear it from the ground. Maker, he didn’t think he was afraid of heights, but it’d been a long time since he’d done anything like this.

The rope on him tightened, “Deep breaths.” Mara’s voice was clear and firm.

He felt stuck, the next handhold seemed too far up for him reach and he didn’t want to let go of his holds. Maybe he should just return to the ground.

“By your right knee is another yellow hold, put your foot on that and push yourself up. Trust your feet,” she offered.

He took deep breaths, glancing down the wall, careful not to look at the ground. He saw the yellow hold. It was small, which was why he’d avoided it to begin with, but she was right, if he put his foot there he’d be able to reach the next yellow hold.

“You got this,” she called.

He didn’t feel like it. He clung to the wall, “Maybe just let me down?”

“Not until you try. Move your right foot. Your feet aren’t going anywhere,” she promised.

He disliked her for a moment, but sucked in a breath. His legs had stopped shaking, and so he held tightly to the wall while he moved his right foot up higher. He put his weight on it, half expecting it to slip off, but it didn’t. And then he reached the next hand hold, and then the next, until he was facing the metal bar the rope was wrapped around.

“Wahoo!” Mara cheered from the ground.

He smacked the bar in triumph and looked down at her.

She was watching him with pride, “Let go of the wall and lean back.”

Maker’s breath, he was really high up. He really didn’t want to let go of the wall, but he forced himself to, and as soon as he was back a bit from the wall he was very gently lowered back to the ground.

“Awesome job,” Mara grinned, offering him a high five.

He somehow found himself hugging her instead, a little unsure how that had happened, “Maker, that was high.”

She didn’t seem bothered by the contact at all, “You did it! That part you were stuck on, definitely the crux, and you pushed through it.” He had to admit there was a sense of thrill and accomplishment now that he was back on the ground, he was almost considering climbing another one.

“Not that I had a choice,” he gave her a slight shove.

“You didn’t sound sure you wanted to be let down. If you had been serious I would have let you down,” Mara shrugged. “Come on, it’s my turn.”

She took his hand and pulled toward the other side of the gym, and he was sure that bit of contact made the whole ordeal worthwhile.


	9. Three Weeks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A #sexlaughterhonesty piece in which Mara and Cullen deal with the fact Mara hasn’t had an orgasm in three weeks. Mara’s POV. NSFW

It had been three weeks since her last orgasm. Mara had told Cullen she wasn’t counting the days, but she was. She suspected he was too. They’d had a lot of sex in those three weeks, a lot of very enthusiastic sex too. And yet….

Well it’d been three weeks.

It wasn’t that things weren’t feeling wonderful, because they were. And it wasn’t that they both weren’t trying, because they had both tried. A lot. The familiar building of pleasure would happen, but it would never break. And she was getting frustrated.

She’d even considered faking it after Cullen had worked her over with his mouth for the better part of half and hour to no avail. She didn’t want to lie to him, but he was so determined and concerned and she wanted him to stop worrying about it.

She wondered if perhaps she’d had it too good for too long. That her body had built up some sort of resistance to his prowess in bed, that perhaps she’d never feel that glorious peak of pleasure again.

Cullen kept telling her to relax, that it would happen but not if she kept worrying about it. She figured he was probably right, but it was easier said than done.

She’d spent too much time on the internet reading up on things, and she hadn’t told him about it. She knew she was being rather ridiculous, and on occasion melodramatic.

But she lay naked under him, after a perfectly good bout of sex, frustrated. Cullen caught his breath, and leaned back so he could look at her.

“Did you…?” the question was tentative, hopeful.

She shook her head. She knew he had, didn’t need to ask. She was a tiny bit jealous. Just weeks ago, a session like this would have led to her feeling totally sated. But now, she just wanted to be doing something else, it was too frustrating.

“I have a surprise for you,” Cullen smiled. He pressed a kiss to her scowling lips as he pulled out of her. He left the bed, opening the bottom drawer of their dresser. He pulled out a long box and set it on the bed.

He sat on the edge of the bed, “Open it.”

She sighed. Now he was getting her pity gifts. She opened the lid of the box and immediately began blushing. Nestled inside was a colorful vibrator. She’d never used one. She knew people did, but sort of assumed it was more for when you weren’t having sex. Single people, not them.

“Um….” she wasn’t sure what to say.

“It’s ten speed, waterproof and rechargeable,” Cullen explained.

“Really?” she picked it up, still struggling to find words.

Cullen nodded, “I thought perhaps we could give it a go.”

She looked at him, “You’re sure?”

Cullen smiled, “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Doesn’t this sort of feel like bringing another penis into the bedroom?” Mara asked.

Cullen laughed, “I appreciate the concern, but no.”

“And you,” looking right at him, “walked into a sex store and bought this?”

“This is what the internet is for,” Cullen blushed as well, hand up on his neck.

“How much research did you do?” she asked, eyebrow raised.

“Enough,” he said, amber eyes narrowed. She laughed a little at that.

“So…?” she looked up at him expectantly, more excited than she wanted to admit.

“Lay back,” he smirked, moving over her.

It didn’t take long for those three weeks of stress and worry to be blotted out by a rather incredible orgasm. And she never had to go three weeks without one again.


	10. A Bit of Reading

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A #sexlaughterhonesty piece where Cullen admits to totally reading up on what the kids are into these days. Mara’s POV. NSFW

Cullen’s bed was warm and comfortable, and Mara was sure she didn’t want to leave it any time soon. She was curled up against him, head on his chest, his steady heartbeat against her ear. One hand was laying gently against his chest, fingers resting on the dusting of golden hair across his chest. She’d pulled up the soft throw he’d started keeping at the end of the bed for when she slept over, since she’d proven pretty proficient at stealing all of the covers. It was soft against her bare skin as Cullen’s fingers traced indeterminate shapes along her arm.

She was still in a pleasant post-orgasm haze, and was convinced that if he let her lay there much longer she would probably fall asleep in his arms. She cuddled in a little closer, adjusting her head to fit perfectly against his arm and chest and settled in. She felt a faint press of lips against her hair as she did and smiled to herself.

She was drifting towards sleep when Cullen’s fingers stilled. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Mmmhmmm,” she murmured against his skin.

“Did you…um….like that thing I did?” he asked tentatively.

Sleep was a distant prospect now as she thought through their earlier activities, trying to figure out what he might be referring to, “What thing? You’re going to have to be more specific. There were a lot of things.”

He stiffened next to her, “I just….never mind. Forget I asked.”

She finally opened her eyes, gazing appreciatively over his glorious naked form while she propped herself up on an elbow to see his face. He’d closed his eyes, but his cheeks and neck were a splotchy red.

“Cullen?” she said gently. “You can ask me anything.”

His eyes fluttered open and he sighed, “I’ve just…I’ve been doing some reading….”

She rested her chin on her hands against his chest, “Some reading?”

He ran a hand down his face as his gaze skittered away from her, “Yes.”

“What kind of reading?” she asked with a smile.

“It’s been awhile, since this,” he gestured between the two of them, “has been a regular thing for me and I wanted to…” Cullen trailed off cheeks darkening.

“See what the kids are up to these days?” she prompted with a chuckle and a waggle of her eyebrows.

Cullen groaned and leaned his head back into the pillows, “Nevermind.”

She slid up further up his body, pressing her breasts against his chest in the way she knew he liked as she placed a hand on his cheek turning him to look at her.

“Not helping,” he murmured eyes roaming appreciatively over her breasts.

“Really?” she pressed herself up closer to him.

His hand ran along her side, pulling her closer, “Distracting.”

“I was hoping it might be more motivational. What were you reading?”

He shook his head, “I’m not telling.”

Her lips were a whisper away from his, “Did you pick up a Cosmo at the supermarket or something?”

He froze, face a deep shade of crimson, “Not exactly.”

She began laughing uncontrollably, “You didn’t!”

“Their articles are all online!” he said indignantly and shoved her away. She landed on the bed, breath coming in gasps between fits of laughter. Cullen scowled at her from his side of the bed as she tried to get a hold of herself. It wasn’t happening, she was laughing so hard tears leaked from the corners of her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she laughed. “It’s just…really?”

Cullen glared at her in response.

“There are just a lot of better sources for that sort of information…” she managed between giggles.

Cullen said nothing, but his face was red all the way up to the tips of his ears.

She fought for control over her amusement at the whole situation and trying for some way to help him regain some dignity. “Look, if everything you did tonight came from your reading I say keep it up,” she said honestly.

He shook his head and seemed to be about to leave the bed, and she reached for him. “Hey, come here.”

He sighed, “What?”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. It was just the mental image of you pouring over a magazine to try to improve your performance was funny to me. But it’s sweet, that you’d do that. That you’d be concerned enough about my enjoyment that you’d research it,” she said earnestly.

His face softened a bit, eyes hopeful, “Really?”

She nodded, “Yes. Come back here.”

He crawled back into the bed next to her, brushing his lips over her temple.

“I love you,” she said quietly against his skin.

“I love you too,” Cullen replied, she could hear the smile in his voice.

She kissed his chest as he settled on the bed, trailing down his abdomen towards his navel.

“What are you doing?” he asked, voice low.

“Trying something I read this one time,” she winked. His body shook with gentle laughter as her lips descended lower.


	11. So I Tried to Draw A Sloth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some absolutely silly silly Cullen drawing a sloth on his board. Because why not?

Cullen wasn’t sure how the class had dissolved to this point. One minute they’d been talking about the Tevinter occupation and now they were having a very in depth discussion about sloths. He’d watched too many animal documentaries to let the bits and pieces of incorrect information flying around his classroom just be, so there he was drawing sloths on his board to illustrate the difference between two-toed and three-toed sloths.

They were sort of ugly creatures, the two-toed ones looked like a cross between a wookie and a pig if he was being totally honest, and he was doing a very poor job of drawing them on his whiteboard.

“They’re called two-toed and three-toed, but they’ve all got three toes actually. It’s in the hands that there’s the difference,” Cullen explained as he drew the claws on each sloth.

“They’re just really lazy,” he heard Gabe said behind them.

Cullen turned, “You know it has much more to do with their diet than just being lazy. They mostly eat poisoned leaves and their stomach has multiple chambers like a cow. So their metabolism is super low, they have to be very thoughtful about how much energy they expend.”

“Is that why they only poop once a week?” another student asked.

Cullen laughed, “That, and it takes a long time to digest the leaves that they eat.”

He took a step back from his board, in all honesty he didn’t think they looked that bad. He was no artist, but they did look unmistakably like sloths.

He turned to the class, to show off his work and give them some more relevant sloth information when Gabe raised his hand. “Yes, Gabe?” Cullen asked.

Gabe was cocking his head as he stared at the board, “Uh Mr. R, what the hell are those?”

Then Cullen promptly brought them all back to their discussion about the Tevinter occupation.


	12. Sleepless Nights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cullavellan week piece. Cullen wakes up in the night and Mara tries to help. Cullen’s POV.

The world was dark outside, the light from the streetlights inched through the blinds, casting lined shadows across the ground and lighting the room just enough. The soft sounds of Mara’s breathing and the whirring of the heat kicking back on were the only sounds in the quiet darkness. Cullen lay awake, not an uncommon occurrence. It wasn’t from nightmares for once, he’d just simply awoken and was unable to get back to sleep. He’d take it over nightmares any night.

It was hardly the first time she’d stayed over, and yet he found himself marveling at the fact regardless. Their clothes were strewn all along the floor, abandoned in the haste to feel skin against skin. There was nothing quite like running his hands along her bare skin, and the way she looked at him had him believing he was not the only one who felt that way.

There she was though, curled up next to him and somehow still stealing all of the blankets. Her blonde head poked up through an opening, the slender curve of one ear peeking out as she slumbered. He smiled, he might just be the luckiest man in all of Thedas. He pressed a kiss to her temple, but was surprised when she stirred.

Mara was one who could sleep through just about anything. He’d learned that in the last few months. Once when he had slept at her place the fire alarm in her building had gone off and the woman hadn’t even stirred. It was a wonder she woke to her alarm in the mornings.

She rose up on her elbows, “Cullen?”

“Go back to sleep, my love,” he said soothingly, pulling the fuzziest blanket up for her to snuggle back into.

“Why are you up?” she asked, voice hoarse from sleep.

“Couldn’t sleep,” he whispered, trying to ease her back down on the bed.

She groaned, “Did I steal all the blankets again?”

She proceeded to shove all of the blankets she’d hoarded over to him. He chuckled a little, as he caught her hands, “You’re fine, I just woke up. Go back to sleep.”

“I’m up now, I’ll stay up with you,” she said, moving closer to him. Her hair was a mess, strands stuck up in odd directions and she was bleary-eyed in the darkness. She looked glorious. If he hadn’t wanted her to get back to sleep so badly he would be kissing her.

“Mara,” he said without much bite to it. She lifted his arm and tunneled under it to rest her head on his chest.

“Cullen,” she said in a perfect imitation of his tone.

He sighed, “I don’t want you to lose out on sleep.”

He felt her shrug, “Tomorrow is Sunday, we can sleep all day.”

She yawned then, and even though he couldn’t see her face he knew her eyes were drooping, “Alright. What do you want to do now you’re staying up with me?”

“Cuddle,” she sleepily mumbled.

He tightened his arm around her and dropped a kiss on the crown of her head, “Alright then.”

It didn’t take more than a few minutes for her breathing to even out. He wasn’t sure how long he laid there, perfectly happy and content, before he followed her to sleep.


	13. Observations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cullavellan week piece on working together. Mara observes Cullen in his classroom. Mara’s POV.

One of the things they’d all agreed upon as a staff was to do observations of one another once a month. They weren’t serious observations, just communicate with one another and go into each other’s classrooms to learn. Mara enjoyed popping into other people’s classrooms even when they didn’t teach the same subject as her.

Last month she’d gone into Varric’s classroom, observed his creative writing class. He was having them read some Hemingway and have them try to imitate his style. It was an exercise Varric clearly enjoyed and the kids did too. I had been fun to see the way Varric interacted with the kids, half of them had nicknames instead of calling them by their names and he took just as much teasing from the kids as he served.

Mara always found herself nervous upon being observed. Worried that she was doing something wrong, or not well enough. She felt self conscious about her material, the way she presented it, everything. It didn’t matter if it was a fellow teacher or an administrator, it freaked her out every time.

Skyhold was a collaborative school, and she’d been slowly trying to get used to the fact that people would be coming into her classroom regularly. It was beginning to get easier, but that day she was observing Cullen in his classroom.

He’d mentioned in their last meeting that he was talking about the Mexican-American War and that he’d be doing a bit on Civil Disobedience and Thoreau. She was curious, since she also taught about the Transcendentalists what things they overlapped on and what she might be able to pick up from the history side of things. Cullen had agreed, and so she planned to spend part of her prep hour in his room observing.

Their relationship was still fairly new, still full of breathlessness and flutterings within her stomach. She kept waiting for that part to subside, like it alway did, but so far with Cullen, it hadn’t. She was excited to see Cullen teach, had only ever really listened from her classroom, had never been able to really see him at work. It was one of those strange things about being a teacher, you often heard a lot about your coworkers, but rarely saw them working yourself.

She went into his classroom about fifteen minutes into the class hour like he’d asked. The students were instantly curious about why she was there, the relatively quiet class erupting into noise.

“Ms. Vell!” one of the students she had earlier in the day called.

“Mr. R, why is Ms. Lavellan here?” another student asked.

Mara cast an apologetic look towards Cullen as she waved at the kids and then made her way to the back of the room, to an empty desk.

Cullen smiled and adjusted his glasses, “She’s here to observe me, so you’re all going to be really good and make me look like the best teacher ever, right?”

“But you are the best teacher ever,” Sean, one of the students Mara also had, said.

Mara shook her head, “I am right here you know.”

Sean laughed, “Well you’re the best English teacher, and Mr. R is the best history teacher.”

“Nice save, Sean,” she couldn’t help but laugh.

Cullen’s eyes were warm as his gaze met hers, then he adjusted his sleeves and began, “Before we really begin talking about the Mexican-American War, we have to talk about the concept of Manifest Destiny. Abigail, do you remember what that means?”

The kids sat in rapt attention, offering up pieces of information when Cullen asked for them and asking questions. For a fifth hour class, they were incredibly well behaved. It occurred to Mara, that the longer she watched the more she understood that Cullen was one of those teachers that students looked really hard to please.

He gave out praise where it was due, but it wasn’t something he just handed out. The kids had a sense of accomplishment when he told them good job in a way she didn’t think her students did. It was clear from the way he talked about the history that he loved it, loved the complexity and picking apart each piece and talking about it and the what ifs.

His eyes kept flicking to hers while he taught, and she tried to always meeting him with a smile, hardly believing that this incredible person she was watching was hers in some way.

When the bell rang and the kids filtered out of the room Cullen walked back towards where she sat, rubbing the back of his neck, “So…how’d I do?”

“That was awesome,” Mara replied, “You’re a really good teacher.”

“Don’t sound quite so surprised,” he quipped.

Mara stood, “I didn’t mean it that way! It’s just, it was really really good. Your kids love you.”

Cullen shifted on his feet awkwardly, “I, um, thank you.”

It struck her then that he wasn’t used to getting feedback on his teaching, or hearing about how great he was. So she continued, “History can sometimes seem boring…”

“Or as you remind me, all the time,” Cullen interrupted.

She shoved him in the arm, “Let me finish, I was in here for almost forty-five minutes and it felt like five. It just flew by.”

Cullen’s amber eyes met hers, “Really?”

She took his hand in hers, “Yes, and I’m not just saying all that because I really like the way you look in that shirt.”

He smirked, tightening his hold on her hand, “Oh yeah?”

“Don’t let it go to your head, Rutherford,” she smiled.

He chuckled, “Never.”

She tried to pull away, but he kept hold of her hand, “Where do you think you’re going?”

“To get all the prepping done that I missed out on while I was in here watching you,” she said.

He pulled her close, they were already pushing it, holding hands like they were. Cullen’s classroom door was closed, but a student could walk in at any moment.

“Cullen,” she said, a warning.

He pressed a chaste kiss to her lips before releasing her, “Thanks for coming in.”

She moved towards his door, willing her legs to move, to leave before she did something really stupid, “Thanks for having me.”

“Can I see you tonight?” Cullen asked, face hopeful.

She nodded, “Come to my room before you leave.” Then she walked the short distance across the hallway to her room and thanked her lucky stars she wrote everything she needed to get done on a sticky note, because she wasn’t sure she could trust herself to remember things when her mind kept drifting back to him.


	14. Inquisitive Students

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anon prompted question about if students ever ask about Cullen’s scar. They do. Cullen’s POV.

Cullen’s third hour class was restless. It was Friday and the last class before lunch, but Cullen had an entire lesson plan on the political environment leading up to the Civil War to get through if they were going to stay on track leading up to winter break.

Cullen tried to be understanding of the restlessness, it was a lecture heavy lesson but everything he was sharing was incredibly interesting and really needed to understand what they were learning about next week.

Gabe, a student with abnormally curly hair and the strangest, most colorful shoes Cullen had ever seen raised his hand. Cullen paused, “Yes, Gabe?”

“Mr. R, what happened to your face?” the student asked, completely serious. Maker’s breath, did he have something on his face?

“What?” Cullen asked, adjusting his glasses and trying not to feel too subconscious.

“Gabe!” Alex, a girl sitting just to the right of Gabe hissed, “That’s so rude, you don’t say it like that.”

Gabe shook his head, “I didn’t mean it like an insult, I just noticed….” He ran his finger over his own lip, “You have a scar.”

Cullen had stood silent at the front of the classroom during the whole exchange. A few students in the back had begun their own side conversations, but the majority of the class watched him for his response.

“Oh,” Cullen sighed.

It wasn’t the first time he’d been asked about it. He didn’t think it was that noticeable, but he’d gotten used to it. It was actually one of the less invasive questions he received from students. At least they weren’t asking about his love life. Students had this odd propensity to get obsessed with one aspect or another of your personal life, and then you never heard the end of it. His first year he’d made the mistake of admitting he was single, and then suddenly every student had an older sister or a cousin they wanted to set him up with, it had been terrible.

“I was in the army, there was an explosion and I took a bit of shrapnel to the face. I needed like five stitches, happened years ago,” Cullen explained. He’d long ago found that if a student asked an off topic question is was usually easiest to just answer it and then move on. It was the least disruptive way to continue, and it didn’t discourage students from asking questions.  

Josh, Gabe’s best friend who Cullen had strategically placed on the other side of the room perked up, “You were in the army! Did you ever kill anyone?”

Andraste preserve him, that was one he hadn’t gotten before.The classroom was suddenly very quiet and attentive. That was one question he didn’t need his students going home and telling their parents the answer to. He sidestepped it, “Now, if you take a look at the next slide-”

The class let out a collective groan.

Gabe threw his head back, “But Mr. R, you can’t just tell us something like that and not tell us more.”

Cullen crossed his arms, “Oh, I think you’ll find I can, and unless you’d rather spend the evening copying all of this information out of the textbook…” He didn’t have to finish the threat, the kids knew he would make good on it.

Pens and pencils resumed their scratching against the notebooks on their desks and the attention was back on the material he was teaching. Cullen hoped that he wouldn’t have to answer that question again, at least until next year.


	15. Colons and Cullens and Really Bad Puns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some silliness about Cullen’s name and colons and (semicullens) semicolons. Mara’s POV.

It was a Thursday in the seemingly never ending month of Guardian. Spring break was still far enough away that a count down was more depressing than it was motivating. There was something about this stretch of the school year that was just difficult. It didn’t matter how much Mara loved her job and her students, this part of the year was always a struggle.

But on this particular afternoon she was in a phenomenal mood. She’d realized something incredibly silly during a grammar lesson she’d given for the fourth time that day. She preferred not to teach grammar in long stretches, rather to do it in minilessons. It was easier for the kids, and teaching grammar never was that interesting. They’d been talking about the difference between colons and semicolons, and she’d had a realization that she’d been dying to share with someone all day.

Mara took her badge off, setting the colorful lanyard in the metal basket at the front of her desk. The school day had ended about an hour ago, but she’d had grades to finish updating. She walked the short distance across the hall, waving to Jim as he rode his cleaning zamboni down the hall. She closed Cullen’s classroom door against the noise as she entered, and he glanced up at her with a soft eyed smile. Someday she might get used to the way he looked at her when they hadn’t see each other all day, the quiet joy that moved across his features, but she hoped she never did.

“Hey.” Cullen set down his pen. He had clearly been pouring over his lesson planning notebook.

“So I realized something while I was teaching today,” she said, unable to hide the grin that came to her lips.

Cullen leaned back in his chair and adjusted his glasses. “Oh?”

He was wearing a blue cowl neck sweater that looked too damn good on him to be fair. “So we were talking grammar in fourth hour today,” she said. Mara picked up a whiteboard marker from the small magnetic box Cullen kept them in.

Cullen was chuckling. “You came in here to talk about grammar?”

Mara glanced to him. “Just wait.”

Cullen sighed and rested his face on his chin, giving her his attention. “Go on.”

She drew a colon and a semicolon right next to each other. “So I realized that this is a ‘Cullen’ and this is a semi-’Cullen’!”

She turned to look at him, unable to stop grinning. Only to notice that Cullen looked less than amused. “You’re quite proud of this aren’t you?”

“Your name is a grammar pun! Come on! It’s hilarious!” Mara set the marker down on the metal shelf a little harder than she meant to.

Cullen let out a long suffering sigh. “Not really.”

She crossed her arms. “You’ve totally heard this before.”

“Every year growing up since grade school.” He stood from his desk.

“Damnit, here I thought I was being so original.”

He laughed. “You were so excited to show me too; I should have been better natured about it.”

Cullen had closed the distance between them and grasped her arms. “Next time let me have my fun,” she complained.

He leaned in and kissed the tip of her nose. “You’re adorable, you know that?”

She sighed, and he laughed as he kissed her. She could feel the smile on his lips as they moved against hers. She buried her fingers into the soft wool of his sweater, pulling him closer. He wrapped his arm around her waist, and she melted into his arms.

Cullen pulled away a few moments later, golden eyes burning into hers. “I think it’s time to get out of here, don’t you think?”

“Yes, I don’t hear the zamboni anymore. Jim might be ready to do the trash next,” she said.

Cullen rested his forehead against hers. “Yeah, don’t really want a repeat of him walking in.”

“We weren’t even doing anything and I still couldn’t look at him for a week,” Mara admitted.

He chuckled. “Get your stuff and let’s go.”

Mara pressed a quick peck to his lips and left the comfort of his arms. “I’ll be quick, ‘colon’.”

“You keep making grammar puns and I won’t see you tonight,” he said, though the threat was empty and she knew it.

She smiled and said over her shoulder. “Just remember you love me, Rutherford.”

“Really bad puns and all.”


	16. New Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A prompt from @littlesnowarrow. Rewrite of the first scene of Class Act, from Cullen’s POV.

Cullen entered Skyhold’s cafeteria, trying to prepare himself for a day full of meetings. There was excitement in the room, the usual kind that accompanied a new school year. There was a bit of mourning too since their first day of meetings signalled the end of summer. Still, it was nice to see everyone again. Their staff was small enough that they just took up one corner of the enormous cafeteria. There were posters up on the wall, famous folks holding up glasses of milk and a large painting of the school mascot. It wasn’t exactly a cheery room, but it was large enough that they could break out into departments without bothering each other.

“Curly! Long time no see,” Varric said, handing Cullen a cup of coffee from a table laden with breakfast foods.

Cullen smiled, appreciating that Varric knew him well enough to know he usually couldn’t stomach anything more than coffee that early in the morning. “Thank you. How was your summer?”

“Spent most of it in Kirkwall,” Varric replied.

Cullen sipped his coffee. “I don’t know if that means it was good or bad.”

Varric chuckled, giving Cullen a pat on the arm. “Me either.”

The chairs were arranged in something resembling a circle, and Cassandra was already seated and pouring over her calendar.

“You mean to tell me you haven’t already planned through Satinalia?” he asked as he took the empty seat beside her.

Cassandra looked up at him and made a disgusted noise. “I’ve just been informed that the counselor’s want to take a day with my seniors in October. So now I have change things around.”

“Serves you right for being so prepared,” Cullen said.

Cassandra rolled her eyes. “Please. You’re planned through First Day at least.”

He grinned. “Probably.” He had most of the year planned; what else would he do with his summer?

“Heard anything about the new teacher?” Cassandra asked with a glance around to make sure they weren’t overheard.

Cullen shrugged. “Only that Leliana and Josephine are excited about her.”

Cassandra nodded. “That is good enough for me.”

As if summoned, Josephine entered through the double doors. The elven woman following her had to be the new teacher. She wasn’t very tall, despite the wedges she wore. Her floral blouse was tucked into a navy pencil skirt, and she looked utterly relaxed except for the white knuckled hold she had on the bag slung over her shoulder.

The new teacher glanced quickly around the room, and only then did he realize he had seen her somewhere before. It was a strange feeling, recognizing her but not knowing her name. He had definitely seen her somewhere though.

“Staff, I’d like to introduce Mara Lavellan, our newest English teacher,” Josephine smiled, “Let’s all gather around so she can introduce herself more properly and meet all of you!”

Mara Lavellan. Cullen opened up his tablet and searched her name. It didn’t take long for him to realize where it had been from. She’d been a presenter at a symposium he’d attended. He still had his notes on her lecture about third space and its implications on language development, he’d thought her lecture entertaining and practical. It wasn’t often that he listened to a presenter at one of those things where he really felt like they understood what it was to be in the trenches of the classroom. He’d wanted to tell her how much he’d enjoyed it, but she’d been bombarded with people after her presentation and so he’d decided against it. He was still quite pleased to have made the connection when he realized everyone was going around the room and sharing their names and subjects.

“Cullen Rutherford, history,” he added hastily before Cassandra could make some remark about him not paying attention.

He met Mara’s gaze as he spoke, but she looked quickly away as if she didn’t want to hold his gaze too long. Despite everything Skyhold was facing, Mara’s presence gave him some hope. Maybe they actually stood a chance.


	17. By Zombies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More grammar silliness in the Class Act AU. Things in Mara’s classroom get a little off topic (as they do), and Cullen is there to see it all. A similar thing might have happened in my classroom… Cullen’s POV, 1k.

The best part about Cullen’s classroom being right across the hall from Mara’s was that on his prep hour he could hear all of the shenanigans she got into with her kids. The desks in Mara’s classroom were arranged into groups to form tables, a stark contrast to the straight, front-facing rows in his. There was always a chaotic sort of buzz coming from her classroom. He’d teased her once about it, and she’d just shrugged and said it was the sound of learning. His teaching style was so different from hers that it had been hard to understand that completely, but the few times he’d observed her this year had shown him that she was right.

That day though, Cullen could hear them talking about zombies. His students had been watching a documentary the last two days, which meant that his grading was up to date, all his planning done. He’d been catching up on some reading, but set it down in favor of crossing the short distance from his classroom to hers.

He leaned silently in the doorway, a faint smile on his face as he took in the scene. Mara was at the whiteboard, marker in hand. She was dressed more casual than usual, jeans with a soft flowing shirt with a gray cardigan. He knew just how soft that shirt was, and she knew just how much he liked the blue color. Behind her on the whiteboard was written, “The pizza was eaten by zombies.” Cullen was still not sure what on earth was going on.

There were several students talking to her at once, and Cullen wasn’t sure how she managed to keep track of them all, but she did.

“Come on, Paul. The mountains would be the place to go, you can set up your own traps and there are enough natural predators to help pick them off,” Jonny, a student Cullen had next hour, said.

Paul shook his head. “I’m telling you, stick in the city. I Am Legend style. You’ve got access to all sorts of conveniences.”

“Remember that the guy in I Am Legend dies, right?” a girl at another table said.

“Okay, but he was fine until he made the one zombie dude mad.” Paul leaned back in his seat.

Mara frowned. “Those weren’t zombies though.”

“Have you played Call of Duty, Ms. L?” another student asked.

Mara laughed. “You mean the zombie level stuff?”

The student nodded. Mara continued, “Once, but I had dreams about protecting my students from zombies for like a week, but they weren’t building up the barriers fast enough and so the zombies kept getting in!”

The students laughed, and Cullen did too. Mara would dream about something like that.

Jonny shrugged. “Well at least now we know that in the event of a zombie apocalypse Ms. L would keep us safe.”

“I think a zombie could take her,” a student in the back called.

Mara laughed. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, Sean.”

A female student glared at Sean. “Are you just saying that because she’s a girl?”

Sean shook his head. “No, because she’s barely tall enough to ride the big rollercoasters.”

Mara’s face shifted into hilarious feigned offense, and Cullen couldn’t help laughing out loud at that. Mara noticed him for the first time eyes meeting his, then narrowing. “You think that’s funny, Rutherford?”

He held up his hands. “Oh no, I know you could take me.”

“That’s something I’d like to see!”

“Fight! Fight! Fight!”

“My money’s on Ms. L!” Came the shouts of the students.

Mara shook her head in laughter. “Look what you did, Rutherford. Here we were having a nice conversation about zombies and passive voice, and you ruined it.”

“That’s what this is? I’d just thought A Raisin in the Sun was a whole lot more exciting than I remembered it being,” he teased, adjusting his glasses.

She rolled her eyes. “Well we’ll get to Raisin if we ever finish talking about passive voice.”

Cullen decided to help her get things back on track. “How do zombies factor in?”

Mara grinned. “Who wants to teach Mr. R about this to help his woefully repugnant grammar skills?”

“Excuse me, ‘woefully repugnant’?” Cullen stepped back as if he’d been struck.

“They not use those big words in history books?” Mara teased. The students “oooohhhhed” and whispered “burn”, but several students had their hands raised.

“Go ahead, Whitney,” Mara called on one.

Whitney sat up in her desk a little straighter. “Well, if a sentence is written in passive voice you can add ‘by zombies’ to the end of it. If it still makes sense, then it’s passive voice. So ‘The pizza was eaten’ add ‘by zombies’ and it still makes sense.”

Cullen nodded in understanding, and had to admit it was pretty clever.

Mara moved to the whiteboard. “So how might we make this active voice?”

Paul raised his hand and Mara nodded to him. “You’d say ‘Zombies ate the pizza’, right?”

“Great job, Paul.” Mara smiled, and then looked back to Cullen. “Make sense?”

Her green eyes were full of amusement, but also a sort of pride that Cullen only saw when she was with her students.

“Very much so.” He stood from his place leaning against the door frame, giving Mara one last smile before going back to his classroom.  

“Alright folks, let’s go ahead and pull out our Raisin books. Who can give us a recap of what happened in the last scene?” Her voice echoed across the hallway, full of contagious excitement.

Cullen sat back down at his desk, contemplating just how to get her back for that ‘woefully repugnant’ comment.


	18. The Wedding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Littlesnowarrow: ALRIGHT I'M REQUESTING A PROMPT (also, Fionna wants to say hi to Argos, but she's busy getting her breath even after such epilogue): WHERE'S THE WEDDING. WE WANT THE WEDDING.
> 
> So have a wedding :D

“Stop fidgeting, you look beautiful,” Deshanna said over Mara’s shoulder. Mara met her gaze in the mirror, and resisted adjusting anything. She wasn’t doing it out of nerves; she was just excited. 

“Sorry,” Mara apologized and turned away from the mirror. Her long wedding dress tangled a bit around her legs as she did. The dress had been her mother’s, though it had been altered quite a bit. The huge, puffy sleeves had been completely replaced, the lace saved to frame the scalloped open back. The skirt had lost a few layers too, mostly of the tulle that had served to give it more volume. The dress had been made hers, but her mother’s presence remained, something Mara had desperately wanted. 

“It’s your wedding day, you can do as you wish, but if you keep messing with your hair or make-up you’ll ruin it,” Deshanna smiled. The chiding had come from a place of kindness, something Mara was still working to remind herself. She and Deshanna were careful with one another, their relationship still healing. It was still tentative, still unsure, but it had gotten much better. 

Mara hadn’t hesitated to call Deshanna as soon as Cullen had proposed. The wedding itself had come together quickly, it was easy, as small as it was. All they’d wanted were their closest friends and family, and Mia had been kind enough to offer up her huge backyard for the event. Deshanna had flown in the morning before, and things had been strangely perfect. 

“Thank you,” Mara said. It was for more than the advice. It was for coming, for holding on to her mother’s dress all these years. Everything. 

Deshanna shrugged off the thanks. “Are you nervous?”

Mara picked up her bouquet. It was heavier than it looked, made of purple wildflowers, white anemones, and sprigs of green. “No. I’m excited!”

“You’re so much calmer than your father. He was a mess,” Deshanna said, sitting down on the chair in the bedroom Mara had used to get ready. They were waiting for Mia to come get them, let them know the ceremony was ready to begin. Mia hadn’t wanted Mara to see the yard the day of, and had made it her ‘secret project’ to transform it into something fitting of a wedding.

“Really?” Mara had a hard time imagining her father ever being nervous. He had always seemed so sure, so infallible. 

Deshanna laughed. “He threw up at least twice the morning of. He was worried that your mother might change her mind, or that he’d mess up the ceremony somehow.”

“Did he?” Mara asked. 

“Goodness no, the Keeper made sure of that. You should have seen the way he looked at your mother when she walked down the aisle. It was like she was the only person on earth.” Deshanna smiled a little to herself. 

“I wish they were here,” Mara admitted. 

Deshanna nodded. “Me too.” They were getting better at talking about her parents, and Mara was better at letting those conversations happen. 

There was a knock on the door, and then Mia entered. She was dressed in a soft blue dress, blonde hair pulled back into a braided bun. 

“Are you ready?” Mia asked, nearly bouncing in excitement.

Mara took one last look in the mirror, making sure own hair looked alright. Soft tendrils framed her face and white flowers peeked out from where they’d been placed in her hair. 

Mara smiled. “Ready.”

Mia led them through the hall of the house, opening up the back kitchen door. “Alright, I’m going to let them know to start.” 

Mia pressed a quick kiss to Mara’s cheek and quickly hugged Deshanna before rushing off. Deshanna had been so welcomed by Cullen’s family, and that had meant more to Mara than she could ever say. Deshanna didn’t seem to know what to do with all of it, but had been polite all the same. 

Deshanna offered Mara her arm. “Let’s get you married.”

Mara laughed and linked elbows with her. “Sounds good to me.”

They slowly rounded the corner along the porch to the large back yard. There were two willow trees near the house, with several fruit trees in lines framing either side of the yard. The apple trees were already bearing small apples. Back beyond the long expanse of green grass was Mia’s garden. Mia was proud of all that she grew. There were already tomatoes turning red, and the raspberry bushes were heavy with not quite ripe berries. 

But Mia had transformed the yard. There were two long tables between the apple trees, for the dinner that would be served after the ceremony. All of their friends and family were gathered before the bigger of the two willow trees. The willow branches swayed in the wind, where Cullen stood under a flower covered archway with Bull. 

Mara hadn’t seen him all day. Mia had insisted on at least some tradition being followed, so he’d been at Branson’s across town. Cullen looked radiant, all smiles as he watched her and Deshanna make their way to him. He looked dashing in his gray suit, a purpled boutonniere pinned on his lapel. Behind him, Bull whispered something that had him nodding and laughing, eyes never leaving hers. Beside him sat Argos, tongue lolled out to the side and sitting more still than she’d ever seen him. 

Around her were all of their friends from Skyhold. Cullen’s siblings stood with them, a perfect joining of their lives. Greg was there too with his wife, Sara, and their little girl Lilith. Besides Deshanna, they were the only family she had invited. She and Cullen had wanted to keep the ceremony small, which was also why Bull was officiating. He already had his license from another wedding, and he’d been thrilled when they asked. Soft music played and Mara could hear the soft clicking of a camera from the photographer they had hired. 

Mara couldn’t keep herself from smiling as she walked the small aisle past their friends. Dorian was wiping at his eyes; a fact which she knew he would vehemently deny later. Varric was gently patting Dorian’s arm, and Sera and Dagna had their arms around around each other. 

It was perfect. 

Mara kept her eyes on Cullen as they approached. She’d expected the excitement, had expected nerves too, but she felt nothing but calm. It was a quiet feeling, like the gentle breeze that shook the willow leaves. 

Deshanna pressed a kiss to Mara’s cheek, giving Cullen’s elbow a quick squeeze as she took Mara’s bouquet and stepped away. Cullen was still beaming, golden eyes bright as he took her hands in his. 

“You look...there are no words,” he whispered, hands cradling hers ever so carefully. Her heart felt so full of joy it might just burst.   

Mara looked up at him. “You clean up pretty good too, Rutherford.” 

She couldn’t take her eyes off of him. She wanted to memorize everything about the next few moments, she wanted to make sure she didn’t miss a single glance or look or feeling. 

Bull was smiling when he began, “These two didn’t even like each other when they met almost two years ago, and now we’re here at their wedding. What a journey it’s been.”


	19. Out of a Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Kagetsukai: I'mna be a little greedy here and ask for some prompts :D 24. Slow dancing for Cullen/Mara (whichever verse you wish). 
> 
> Part two of wedding day fluff.

Music and the joyous sound of laughter filled the summer night around Cullen. He’d moved from the head of the long table Mia had placed him and Mara at. He didn’t love the attention of being at the very front anyway. Mia had hung string lights above them using the apple trees as anchors, and small candles glowed on the tables near vases of purple flowers. 

His sister had gone to a lot of work to make this all happen, and if she hadn’t enjoyed the whole thing so much he might have felt a little bad. He toyed with the dark gray band on his left hand; he wasn’t used to it. He kept wondering if this was all some dream, and trying to remind himself that it wasn’t. 

Mara was over with her Deshanna and Greg, using the time to catch up with them. Her hair looked golden under the light of the setting sun and the string lights. Wife. She was his wife. He couldn’t help but smile every time he realized that they were married.  

“Keep looking at her like that, and I’m going to puke,” Dorian said beside him. 

Cullen glanced towards his friend. “It is my wedding day.”

“Like that’s an excuse,” Dorian quipped as he took a bite out of his second or third piece of cake. Cullen had lost count.  

On the other side of Dorian, Bull was a few drinks in, and had become very affectionate. “Oh come on, Kadan. It’s all summer love.” 

Bull nuzzled Dorian’s cheek and Dorian did his best to look annoyed. “Amatus, you are going to ruin my hair.”

“I can think of at least thirteen better ways to ruin your hair,” Bull rumbled. 

Cullen decided that was a good cue to give the two of them their space. He made his way slowly towards Mara, marveling at how easily their friends and family had mixed. Sera was off on the far side of the yard climbing the apricot tree with the kids. Mia and Matthew were chatting animatedly with Cassandra and Blackwall. Rosalie and Josephine had become fast friends, and Branson and Leliana were laughing about something. 

The music shifted, he didn’t recognize the song, but it was slow. He caught Mara’s hand as he approached, and she leaned into him. Deshanna, Greg, and Sara gave them both smiles and melted back towards the table, giving them a bit of privacy. 

“Would you like to dance?” he whispered in her ear. 

She was positively beaming as she looked at him. “Yes.”

They walked hand in hand away from the tables, to an open expanse of grass. Cullen spun her around, and then he took her in his arms. She was barefoot, had ditched her shoes sometime during dinner. They swayed slowly to the music as the stars blinked to life above them. 

“I keep wondering if this is all real,” Cullen admitted, words falling into the scant space between them. It all felt like some perfect dream, and he was worried that he’d wake up any moment. 

Her green eyes were understanding as she moved closer. “It is.” 

“I love you,” he said. He’d lost count of how many times he’d said it that day, but he said it anyway. 

She always smiled the same way when he said those words, and he knew he would never grow tired of it. 

“I love you, too.”

Cullen closed the distance between them, kissing her slowly and unhurriedly. All of this was so much more than he had ever imagined for himself. He could feel her smile against his lips, felt the corners of his own mouth upturn in response. Her fingers clutched at his back, pulling him closer. He was only too willing to comply. 

He wasn’t sure how many moments he lost in the feeling if her against him, in the assurances her lips promised. Cheering erupted from the tables, and not a few bawdy comments. 

Mara pulled back with a laugh. “Didn’t realize everyone was watching.”

Bull and Dorian had joined them on the impromptu dance floor. “That’s what happens on your wedding day, you know,” Bull grinned. 

The rest of the group was slowly following their lead, dancing and singing along to the music. Cullen and Mara continued to sway. He held her closely, neither of them wanting much distance between them. She felt like home and forever, and he had no intention of ever letting go. 


	20. Tradition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A prompt from Follows-Swallows: 28.Teaching the other something new for Cullen/Mara in either the Class Act AU or canonverse? :)
> 
> Okay, so there’s this sort of weird thing that sort of happens out here in the American West. Schools and communities put these letters up on mountains and hillsides, and they become a sort of local fixture. Hiking up to them tends to become a rite of passage, so I’ve made it a Ferelden thing.

“Why exactly are we doing this?” Mara asked Cullen quietly. She didn’t want to be too loud, lest the members of student council or Dorian hear them. 

“It’s tradition,” Cullen explained. 

They were hiking. Well, if that’s what walking straight up the side of a mountain was. Mara hiked, but only when it meant there was a rock wall she could climb once she got to the end of wherever she was going. Hiking just to hike wasn’t exactly her favorite. Their destination was the huge white SH on the mountain. It was some sort of local thing, having letters on the mountains. 

“Okay...but why?” Mara asked. 

Cullen shrugged. “No idea. It’s just a thing. There was an H in Honnleath we hiked to all the time.”

“So this is a weird Fereldan thing?” 

Dorian called back from the front of the group, “Yep, but there are weirder.”

Cullen scowled in Dorian’s direction. “You’re the one leading this hike.”

“It’s tradition! Every year as a student council we hike up here. We have breakfast, we repaint the rocks that form the SH. It’s a bonding experience,” Dorian said. 

“It’s true!” a few of the students chimed in. 

Mara was beginning to regret agreeing to be Dorian’s assistant advisor. “Great!” 

Cullen laughed. “You have all the hiking gear, I thought you’d be a bit more into this.”

“If I can climb a wall at the end of it, I’m good with a bit of a hike approach. Otherwise...not so much.” Mara took a step over a particularly gnarled root on the trail. She was bad enough at walking on a good day, so hiking just made staying upright a little bit harder.

“It’s worth it for the view,” Cullen promised. 

“It better be if I’m up hiking at seven a.m. in the summertime,” Mara grumbled. 

“You agreed to this!” Dorian said, moving along the switchbacks like they were nothing. He was right though, Mara had agreed to be his assistant in some effort to make Dorian a little less stressed. The man somehow ended up in charge of everything, and she and Cullen were determined to have that change for the upcoming school year. Or at least pry a few things away from him to make life generally more bearable. 

They’d been hiking for the better part of an hour when the trail finally evened out, and Mara could see the S and H on the mountainside made up of painted rocks arranged between wooden slats. They were a hell of a lot bigger than she’d thought they would be, but it was the view behind her that really caught her attention. 

The small farming suburb of Denerim they lived in stretched out below them, green and just coming alive. She could see Skyhold High, the football team practicing down on the field. Cars buzzed down the roads like tiny ants, and off in the distance the city of Denerim emerged out of the haze. Mara had never realized just how green it all was. There were long expanses of farmland nestled up against the mountains bathed in the golden light that poured out from between craggy peaks. 

“Wow.” 

Cullen wrapped an arm around her. “I told you the view was worth it.” 

His glasses kept slipping down his nose, and it was already hot despite how early it was. “It’s amazing.”

The kids were already climbing up to the top of the S and H and snapping pictures together when Dorian joined Mara and Cullen. “There are definitely worse traditions.”


	21. Accidentally Sunday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poweredbycoffeeandwine requested Mara and Cullen accidentally sleeping in. If you're a teacher, there is nothing more terrifying than the thought that you may have slept in and school started without you. Because the kids show up, even if you don't.

Mara came to slowly, and she wondered just how close it was to her alarm going off. She often woke just a few minutes before it went off, and it was annoying to not be able to really fall back asleep. She could hear Cullen’s deep breathing beside her, and tried to make her way back to sleep. She lay there long enough to realize that she wasn’t going to be able to get back to sleep, and so she opened her eyes to see just how long she had to enjoy the bed before getting up. It was brighter in the bedroom that it should have been. The light seeping through the blinds was golden, and she pushed herself up to look at the clock. 

School started in twenty minutes. 

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit.” Mara rubbed the last bit of sleep from her eyes and turned to Cullen’s sleeping form. His hair was sleep disheveled and curled, his arm stretched out over his head. She didn’t touch him, knew that waking him with touch and in a panic would do more harm than good. “Cullen!” 

He shot up, eyes still blurry from sleep. “What?”

“Your alarm didn’t go off, Rutherford! School starts in twenty minutes!” Mara had overslept before, but never this badly, not since college. 

Cullen fumbled as he put his glasses on and looked at the clock on the dresser. “Maker’s breath!”

Mara was already scrambling out of the bed. “We need to get ready!”

Cullen nodded. “You get the bathroom first, I’ll go make some coffee. Do I need to text Leliana?”

“No, we can make it,” Mara said. She hurried over to the closet and tried to find an outfit that would make it seem less like she’d rolled out of bed right before going to work. She picked clothes quickly, and rushed into the bathroom. 

Her heart was pounding, and she already felt like she had a headache. She began going through her lesson plans for the day while she washed her face and tried to pull her hair back. She should be good on copies for the day, but there was something she felt like she was forgetting. She went back through her plans again while she brushed her teeth, hoping it would become obvious. 

Cullen reappeared in the doorway to the bathroom, leaning heavily against the door frame. She looked to him a little alarmed, and without stopping brushing she asked, “Why aren’t you getting ready?” 

He ran a hand through his hair and crossed his arms. “It’s Sunday.”

“It’s….what?” she stopped and spit into the sink. She began counting back days in her head. Her hand flew up to her mouth. “IT IS.”

Cullen began laughing. “Damnit woman, you really had me going!”

Mara hadn’t yet changed out her pajamas, and the relief spilled out of her in laughter. “I really thought it was Monday.”

Cullen adjusted his glasses. “I know.”

She threw her toothbrush in the holder on the counter with a little more force than necessary. “Can we go back to bed now?”

“Come here,” Cullen pulled her into his arms, kissing her head. She sighed as she wrapped her arms around him, head resting against the worn cotton of his shirt. 

“Sorry.” 

“Let’s go back to bed,” he said quietly. “Then we can discuss how you can make it up to me because you nearly gave me a heart attack.”

She shoved him playfully. “I nearly gave myself one.”

He pulled gently on her hand, leading her to the bedroom. “Come on. Let’s see if we can get back to sleep.”


	22. Unrealistic Expectations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from SaibraRutherford: Follower celebration prompt. Based on our conversation about my mum being on strike, how would the teachers of Skyhold High react to the school district trying to implement reduced prep time, mandatory summer school and reduced pay (BTW, Colleges Scotland finally backed down - mum keeps her pay, doesn't have to work in the summer and only loses one hour of prep time a week)
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you for the prompt! The good news is that Skyhold High and Denerim School District have Leliana, Josephine, and Vivienne and these ladies would sooner die than let something like that happen to their teachers. So have a little silliness. Also YAY FOR YOUR MUM!!!!

“They’re doing what?” Dorian said, voice full of indignation. Mara was glad he was voicing what she was feeling. 

Leliana was in the front of the sun room, holding one of the first faculty meetings of the new school year. It was only Tuesday, but she looked exhausted. 

“The school district has handed down these new expectations. I’m just the messenger,” Leliana explained. 

The new expectations were ridiculous. Mandatory summer school, less prep time, and lower pay. Mara turned to Cullen. “Did you know about this?”

He was their school’s union representative, and all of these sorts of things were supposed to go through the union negotiations first. 

Cullen shook his head, “No, this is the first I’m hearing about it.”

Dorian crossed his arms. “I refuse to follow those expectations. I’m already operating a science department on a lower budget, with fewer teachers. That means bigger class sizes and more grading. No. Absolutely not.”

Mara was bothered by the new information as well. “Is this Superintendent Norton’s doing?”

Leliana sighed. “Yes.”

“I’ll talk with the union, and let you know what happens,” Cullen said. 

“I can’t believe they didn’t make the union aware of this,” Mara said. 

“If Norton continues to be his awesome self and refuses to negotiate, what happens?” Varric asked. 

Cullen shrugged. “Probably a strike, but Denerim School District hasn’t had one in twenty years. Even then, it was due to state legislation. There was a two day walk-out, districts around the state took turns until they raised the money per pupil to the Thedas average.”

Leliana glared at all of them. “If I have to keep this school running without any of you, I will kill you. However, these are ridiculous, and I’ll do what I can while the union does their work too.”

“Strike! Strike! Strike!” Sera chanted quietly. 

Dagna elbowed Sera. “Shhhh.”

Sera didn’t stop, just continued more quietly. 

Leliana rubbed her eyes. “You’re dismissed.”

***

Two days later the faculty was back in the sun room for an emergency meeting. Mara and Cullen walked in together, Mara finding them a seat next to Blackwall. 

“Any idea what this is about?” Mara asked him. 

He shook his head. “No idea, but Josie seemed excited and not unhappy.”

Cullen and Mara exchanged a knowing glance. “Fair enough.”

Leliana hurried into the sun room, Vivienne following behind her. 

The whole of the faculty weren’t quite there, but it was past seven. Josie stood with her clipboard in hand, taking roll. 

Leliana smiled, “I’ve got some good news.”

Dorian sat down next to Cullen, “Well, I sure hope so to have two meetings in one week.”

“Superintendent Norton tendered his resignation last night at the school board meeting,” Leliana said. 

The room immediately fell silent. Mara sort of wanted to dance. She hadn’t been a fan of the man when she’d faced him at the end of the last school year while she was trying to save the school. 

Leliana gave Vivienne a nod, and she strode out to the front of the room. “I am your new superintendent, but I came with better news. All of the expectations you heard about earlier this week are no longer applicable. There will be some changes, but nothing so drastic, and certainly nothing without the union’s support.” 

Sera looked positively deflated. “So we’re not striking?”


	23. Hallways like Murder Scenes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from SaibraRutherford: Follower celebration prompt: Zamboni's leaks are red and look scarily like trails of blood. What would happen if the same thing happened to Janitor Jim's hallway scrubber?
> 
> This is 100% something Janitor Jim would do. Thank you for the prompt!

Cullen liked his mornings much better than in years previously. He awoke next to Mara each day, and that in and of itself was a small sort of miracle. They got ready together, had their morning coffee, and then they drove to the school and walked into the school together. Every single day. Cullen wouldn’t have had it any other way. 

Mara adjusted her messenger bag. “So what’s on the docket for today?”

“Oh we’re doing different types of governmental systems today, just review before their exam,” Cullen said. The mornings were beginning to have a touch of chill in them. There was a slight breeze blowing from the canyon as they walked into the school. 

“You were going to share that powerpoint with me right? So that I can review those with my kids for the dystopian societies they’re going to create?” Mara asked. 

Cullen laughed. “Remind me again what that has to do with Fahrenheit 451?”

Mara rolled her eyes. “Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopia, so rather than a final exam we’ll create our own societies. It should be so much fun.”

He had been teasing her, but she always seemed to take everything she did in her classroom so seriously. It was adorable. 

They walked through the double doors, he held the first one open for her, and she had propped the next one open for him. It was the same every day, down to which of the four doors they entered in. But that morning, Mara stopped cold. 

“What the hell is that?” she asked. 

Cullen nearly walked into her before realizing she had stopped. “What?”

And then he saw it. There were dark red stains all over the floor, dried to almost brown. For a moment he panicked, until he saw that there was a long trail of red travelling down the hallway just about as wide as the hallway scrubber. 

“It looks like a murder scene,” Mara breathed. 

Cullen laughed, and Mara rounded on him like he was insane. “It’s transmission fluid.”

“How do you know that?” Mara asked, eyes wide.

It had happened before, and that was the only reason he’d known. Their janitor, Jim, wasn’t incredibly well known for being the most observant of workers. His scrubber had leaked transmission fluid while cleaning the basketball court. He hadn’t noticed, and when Bull had gone in for PE that day the kids had freaked out thinking something terrible had happened to someone. He’d had a prep hour so he and Bull had quickly mopped up the mess. 

“Happened once a few years back,” Cullen explained, pulling his phone out of his pocket. 

He walked a little further into the building, glancing down the hallway where his classroom was, and he shook his head. There was a long streak of red that stretched all the way down the corner, and if Cullen were a betting man, he’d put money on it stretching all the way to Dorian’s classroom at least. 

He dialed Leliana’s number, waiting for her to pick up while Mara stood at the faculty doors looking absolutely confused. 

“Cullen,” Leliana answered. 

“Hey, we’ve got a situation down here at the west doors. Looks like Jim cleaned the hallways, but didn’t realize that the scrubber was leaking transmission fluid,” he explained. 

“Again? I’m on my way,” Leliana replied. 

“I’m not sure how far out it stretches, we just got here,” Cullen said. 

Leliana swore. “It starts right at the bottom of the stairs, he drove it down the stairs again. No wonder it was leaking fluid.”

The phone clicked off as Leliana rounded the corner down the far hallway. “Did he just do one quick loop down the halls?” Leliana yelled. 

Behind him Mara was laughing. Cullen couldn’t contain his own laughter, “Apparently!”

Leliana pointed to the red streak that stretched down the hallway behind her, “Look at this! How much transmission fluid does one of those things hold?”

Her radio was in her hand and she spoke into it, “Bull? Tell me you’re here.”

“What’s up Red?” his voice sputtered over the channel. 

“Jim, Jim is what’s up,” Leliana said. 

Bull’s voice sounded tired. “What this time?”

“My entire downstairs looks like some bloodied corpse was dragged through it, that’s what.”

Bull swore. “Well, you would know.”

Leliana glared at the radio, but before she could retort Bull’s voice crackled over it again. “I’ll get Krem, and down there with some mops.”

“Thank you,” Leliana replied, then she turned to Mara and Cullen. “This was not how I envisioned my Wednesday morning going.”

Mara grinned. “Makes a good story.”

Leliana crossed her arms. “I’m half tempted not to tell the kids what happened. Just stand here and look really frustrated as they walk in.”

Cullen snorted, Leliana was already formidable enough without adding to her reputation. “Whatever works. Can we do anything?”

Leliana sighed. “No, go get things ready for your classes. I’ve already had two teachers call in sick, and I just need people doing their jobs.”

Mara gave Leliana a wave and they side stepped the worst of the red streaks as they walked down their hallway. “I had no idea scrubbers leaking could do this.”

“Leliana is so banning Jim from the scrubbers now,” Cullen said. 

Mara grinned. “Probably.” She stood on her tiptoes for a kiss before telling him to have a good morning like she always did. Each morning was familiar, but no two were quite exactly the same. 


	24. Dog Days of Summer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Littlesnowarrow had asked: May I ask for another prompt? Could you tell us about the day Mara and Cullen went to adopt Argos? Beccaboo8810 had also asked about Argos's adoption and Mara's moving in.

“I think that might be the last of it,” Cullen said as he put what he hoped was the final box in the back of the small moving truck. 

Mara was behind him in a t-shirt and jeans, a crate of cleaning supplies in hand. “I sure hope so.”

She really didn’t have that much, her entire life had fit into the small ten-foot truck, but Cullen had foolishly thought they didn’t need any help. They’d done alright just the two of them, but it had been exhausting. 

Mara had been slowly moving her things over the last couple of weeks, and they had been moving things around in his house to make room. Cullen didn’t have definite opinions about much of his things, wasn’t even overly attached to most of them. He was just happy she was moving in at all. He probably would have let her paint everything pink as she had jokingly suggested if it meant she’d be there. 

“I’m going to do one last walk-through, I’ll be right back,” Mara said, kissing him quickly on the cheek and setting her crate down. 

“Alright,” he replied, pulling the cargo door shut and latching it. The summer day was already hot, even though it wasn’t even mid-Justinian. Denerim usually avoided the really hot temperatures until Solace. The peaks of the mountains were still mostly white, though the snowpack was melting more quickly than usual. The rivers had been overflowing, and there had been too many news stories of people losing their lives to the cold and quick moving waters. 

His phone vibrated in his pocket. It was Sera. 

“Hello,” he answered. 

“Cully! We need your help!” Sera said. She didn’t sound panicked or worried, but she did sound excited and that concerning on its own. 

“Okay,” he said cautiously. 

“Come over now. You’re not busy, right? I mean it’s summer, who’s busy? We aren’t!” Sera was rambling, and that was never a good sign. 

Cullen sighed. “We’re in the middle of moving Mara’s things, can we come by later?”

“Pfffft...bring all that stuff. We’re on the way!” Sera replied. 

Mara came out from her apartment, closing the door behind her. “What’s up?”

“One second, Sera.” He muted her. “It’s Sera, apparently we need to go over right now.”

Mara laughed and checked her phone. “It’s only ten, and we have the truck until six. Why not?”

“I was hoping you’d be less cool with this,” Cullen admitted.

“Sera has me curious,” Mara shrugged.

“That’s her plan, we get curious and show up and she’ll pelt us with water balloons or something.” 

Mara held her hand out for his phone, and he handed it to her. “Sera, we’re on our way.”

Cullen was sure he could hear some sort of celebration on the other end when Mara handed the phone back to him and he hung up. 

He threw Mara the keys. “You’re driving.”

Mara stuck her tongue out at him. “Fine.”

Sera and Dagna lived not far from Skyhold in a sleepy farm town hidden among hills. Their house was brown brick with red accents. It looked smaller from the front than it really was, but Cullen’s favorite part was how the roof curved out over the front door. The house was cheery, but mostly it looked like it was always giving the world a lopsided smile. They didn’t really have neighbors, which was probably a good thing. Their house sat on a good size bit of land, and he could see the beehives from the road as they pulled up along the narrow street. There wasn’t sidewalk on their street, so he just pulled off a bit so anyone who drove by could get around them. 

Sera was at the screen door before he or Mara could knock, one finger up to her lips. “Shhhh.” She was barefoot wearing only a red tank top and shorts. 

“What is going on?” Mara whispered. 

Sera opened the screen door as quietly as possible. “He’s sleeping.” She said it like it explained everything. 

“Who’s sleeping?” Cullen asked. 

“Little no name,” Sera said, waving them inside. It was pleasantly cool in the dark house, and there nestled on the couch on a blue blanket was a small mabari curled up, and asleep. His coat was a soft gray, but there were little patches of white around his muzzle. 

“Oh, he’s so cute!” Mara whispered, and moved around to the front of the couch. Sera and Dagna’s house was a colorful and eclectic mix of their tastes, and almost every wall was a different color. 

“One of the kids found him abandoned in a field and brought him here. Dagna’s cat hates him,” Sera explained. He knew that ‘kids’ meant one of her students. 

“Where is Dagna?” Mara asked. 

Sera shrugged. “She’s teaching summer school until one.”

Cullen looked to Sera. “So?”

“Do you want him?” Sera asked. 

Mara’s face lit up, and Cullen knew that saying no was not going to be an acceptable answer. The puppy was cute, and he had a fenced in yard. “I’ve always wanted a mabari.”

Mara’s answering smile was worth it. “Really?”

Sera grinned. “As a heart attack. You’ll take good care of him, yeah?”

“Yes!” Mara said, clearly louder than she intended to because she clapped a hand over her mouth as soon as she spoke. 

In response the puppy jumped, but upon opening his eyes and seeing other people there he immediately got up, tail wagging. 

Mara bent down to pet him. “Oh, who wouldn’t want you. He needs a name.”

Cullen moved to her side. “You’re thinking something literary, aren’t you?”

She glared at him. “You’re thinking something historical, aren’t you?”

“Nerds,” Sera said under her breath, walking through to the kitchen. “I’m making lunch.”

“What about Tennyson?” Mara asked, undeterred. 

Cullen shook his head. “I am not naming him after a poet.”

“Okay, what’s your pick then?” Mara asked. 

Cullen scratched the puppy under the chin. “Argos.”

Mara thought about it for a moment. “The dog in The Odyssey?” 

“Yes.”

Mara picked the puppy up. “What do you think, should we call you Argos?” The puppy snuggled into her arms. 

“Well I think it’s safe to say he likes you,” Cullen smiled. 

“Fine, Rutherford. Argos it is.”


	25. Those Damn Stairs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sloth giveaway prompt: more Branson in A Class Act verse....did he have a hand in helping Cullen settle into his own home? What of that creaky step? (You knew this was going to happen ;) )
> 
>  
> 
> I did know that you were so going to request this. And it is such a good thing. Thank you! Also pssstt @gangsterbee, you asked for something similar too :) This is a companion piece to a longer one, Worse For Wear. Poor Branson lol

Branson was working on those infernal stairs. Again. 

He’d spent the better part of yesterday working on them. He thought he’d gotten them all to stop squeaking, but the third one down still did. Though with all the wood glue and added wood he’d screwed into the risers and tread, he wasn’t sure how it was possible. 

He scratched at the scruff of his beard. It was still in the perma-itch phase, and he had been tempted to shave it off more than once. But he was in competition with Cullen, and he didn’t want to admit that his brother was definitely winning. 

“Shit,” he swore as he walked over the stair for the upteenth time. He was trying to pinpoint where exactly there was give. He could have called Cullen over to help, but Cullen was doing his own swearing in the kitchen.

He pinpointed the squeak and bounced a little. He tried to map out the spot in his head and headed back to the closet under the stairs where he could work. They’d been lucky that the bottom of the stairs wasn’t covered in sheetrock, which made fixing them a hell of a lot easier. 

His drill was where he had left it, and he crouched down hoping that where the squeak was coming from was obvious from this side, because it certainly wasn’t from the other side. He’d even ripped up the gross teal carpet that Cullen was replacing anyway, but there was nothing. 

And on the other side? Nothing. 

He screwed two more screws into the wood he’d put right by the joint, as close to where he’d pinpointed the squeak as he possibly could. He set his drill back down and walked out of the closet, and then around the corner to go up the stairs. He walked up the first two without any sound. 

Then, the third one squeaked. 

“Andraste’s fucking sword!”

This had to be at least the fifth time he’d made this same circuit, and that stupid stair probably had at least six more screws in it than was necessary. Especially since none of them had fixed the damn squeaking. 

Cullen appeared from around the corner, eyebrows raised and dried caulking all over his arms. “What?”

“It’s still squeaking.” Branson gestured at the stair he was still standing on, as if the stupid thing was doing it out of spite. 

Cullen ran a hand through his hair. “Did you glue all the joints?”

“Yes.”

“And you screwed the riser and the tread?” 

“Yes.”

“Did-” 

He cut Cullen off. “I know more about this than you!”

Cullen scratched at his reddish-blonde beard, looking completely unperturbed. “Well, then leave it. It’s structurally sound, it’ll be fine.”

“But it squeaks!” Branson tried to reign in his patience, but they both knew Cullen had him beat in that department. At least some things hadn’t changed in all those years he’d been gone. 

“Built in alarm system. I’ll know if someone tries to come upstairs in the middle of the night,” Cullen replied with a shrug. 

“Yeah, well you don’t sleep anyway.” Branson walked down the stairs, and headed back into the closet. 

“What are you doing?” Cullen called after him. 

“Fixing that damn stair!” Branson replied glaring up at the yellow light bulb in the small closet and the metal string that hung beside it. 

He wasted two more hours before he gave up, and five years later that damn stair still squeaked.


	26. Written on the Ankles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from SaibraRutherford: STG this happened to my mother: "Cullen weren't you giving a test on [X] this morning? Because I just caught [student Y] with notes about it written on their ankle..."
> 
>  
> 
> This is a pretty creative way to cheat. Most of the time my kiddos just leave their notebooks or folders open on the ground. That usually stops after I give the first non-reversible zero of the year for cheating.

One thing that students never seem to understand is that teachers see all. Well, not really  _ all _ , but enough. And just because the teacher didn’t call you out on it, doesn’t mean nobody saw. Mara had seen her fair share of weird things from students. Those things ranged from kids picking their noses to picking zits on their arms, and other things of that nature. 

Most of the time Mara didn’t say anything. Being a teenager was bad enough without your teacher embarrassing you in front of the whole damn class. 

Her students were working on creating their dystopian societies. It was an easy class period for Mara. It meant she could work at her desk getting grading done, and occasionally walking around to make sure the kids were on task and to answer questions. 

For whatever reason kids were way more likely to ask questions when she walked by rather than just raise their hand, so she made it a point to stop at each group of desks and check in every so often. It also gave her a chance to chat with the kids. It was still early in the school year, and she was still getting to know the kids. It was always easiest to get to know them when they were already chatting with their friends. 

“So there’s like this whole Halloween episode, and they’re trying to prove who is the better detective by stealing something from each other,” Gabe was explaining. 

Beside him Jeff nodded. “It’s so funny.”

Their friend, Melanie, opened her phone. “Okay, what was the name of it again, I’ll check it out.”

Gabe and Jeff high-five. “Yeah!”

“We doing okay over here?” Mara asked the students. 

Jeff immediately turned back to his computer. “Yeah, sorry Ms. L.”

Mara smiled. “Have you seen the episode where they participate in the Homeland Security drill, and mess it up?” 

Gabe’s face lit up. “You watch it too?”

She and Cullen had been binge watching the show in question for the last couple of weeks, and really enjoying it. It was funny, but not stupidly so. 

“Yeah, it’s pretty awesome,” she replied. 

“We’re trying to get Melanie to watch it,” Jeff explained. 

“She only likes the shows with old people pretending to be high school kids,” Gabe said. 

Melanie rolled her eyes. “Whatever, Gabe.”

Gabe stretched his long legs out and put his hands behind his head. He was always dressed eclectically, curly hair long and bouncing. Today he was wearing bright yellow pants that, and blue socks, but it was the writing on his ankle that caught Mara’s attention. She could make out some names and dates scrawled there that she was pretty sure had to do with the test Cullen was giving that day. 

“Get bored in class today?” Mara asked, gesturing to his ankle. 

Gabe crossed his other foot over the ankle in question. “You know how math class gets.”

She nodded. “Sure do.”

Then she made her way back to her desk. She could have walked over to Cullen’s directly, but she didn’t want to draw too much attention. Instead she shot off a quick email. 

 

_ Hey, weren’t you giving a test today? _

 

His response came back within a few moments:

 

_ Yes, why? _

 

She shook her head. 

 

_ Because Gabe has some notes for it written on his ankle.  _

 

She had to stifle a laugh at Cullen’s reply. 

 

_ Of course he does. I don’t have him until fifth hour. It better be gone by then. _

 

It wasn’t the most creative way for cheating she had ever seen, but it certainly was stupid. Mara hoped that her comment scared Gabe enough that his ankle was clear by the time he showed up to Cullen’s class. 


	27. Review Games and Please No One tell Ms. Montilyet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok but as a prompt: Mara trying and failing not to laugh at a joke from a student that as a teacher, she really shouldn't be laughing so hard at.
> 
>  
> 
> I loved this, and it does happen. But you know what is worse? When as a teacher you say something you REALLY shouldn’t have said and then you have to try REALLY hard not to laugh at it. Also, this may or may not have actually happened. It totally happened.

Her third hour was unsurprisingly more invested in their roots review game than any of her other classes. It was one of her own creation, and one she was more than a little proud of. She’d based it around Harry Potter since most of the spells within the books were based around latin roots, she didn’t think it’d be too much of a stretch to have the kids write their own spells with the latin roots they’d been learning all year.

The kids had gotten so involved they’d even brought their own wands. Mara had never been more proud of the level of complete and utter nerdiness that was occurring in her classroom.

“Serpensortia is the spell that hurt Malfoy in the sixth book,” one student was explaining to another along the sides of the game.

Mara shook her head. “No, no, no. That’s not right.”

Dillon looked unimpressed. “Really?”

“Serpensortia is the spell that conjures a snake. Sectumsempra is what Harry did to Draco in the bathroom,” she explained. As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she realized that she hadn’t exactly phrased it the best way. She also realized that this was going to be way worse than the time she accidentally taught her students about the Valley of Asses.

Dillon’s eyes went wide, and Mara felt her face burn as the students who had heard began to laugh.

“Ms. L!” Dillon said, as if he was scandalized. Well, shit.

She really did try to school her expression because she really shouldn’t be laughing at that, but ultimately they were yelling ‘spells’ at each other in her classroom and it wasn’t the end of the world.

So she laughed, and then the kids laughed even harder. The embarrassment and sheer hilarity of the whole thing made her laugh even harder, and suddenly she was crying as well as laughing.

Cameron, who had been bent over a desk laughing, noticed Mara’s tears. “Oh Ms. L! Are you okay?”

Mara nodded, and tried to say yes around bits of laughter as she wiped her eyes. The entire class was still rolling with laughter, and Mara knew her face was still bright red.

She finally got a handle on herself, wiping her tears away. “Well, let’s be sure not to tell Ms. Montilyet about that one.”

No one told Josie, but it was the class joke for the rest of the year.


	28. Proposal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from BeccaBoo8810: Has anyone asked you to write about Cullen's proposal, their adoption of Argos, or they day Mara officially moved in? On top of what happened to Calpernia, those would be interesting/fun bits to read about. :) P.S. I hope you are having fun writing these little snippets of their lives. I doubt I'm the only one who is loving reading them. ♡♡
> 
> I know you are not the only person who asked about the proposal, but my brain is blanking. Anyway, this was super fun to write so thank you for the prompts :) I’m having so much fun writing these so I’m glad you folks are also having fun reading them. Thank you!

Mara’s forearms were aching, and the rest of her was feeling delightfully sore as she lowered Cullen down from the top of the climbing wall. Her fingers were cramping slightly as she fed the rope through the gri-gri and he slowly descended, kicking off the wall at intervals. 

Once his feet were firmly planted on the ground she began unthreading the rope from the gri-gri. “Should we call it? I think they close in like five minutes.” 

They were one of only two couples still in the gym, and Mara was pretty sure the ones climbing a lead route were employees. 

Cullen untied his harness from the rope. “I think there’s time for you to climb one more route.”

Mara shook out her arms. “I don’t know that I’m up for it.”

Cullen moved closer to her, wrapping an arm around her waist. “Come on, something easy. You know you want to.”

She pressed a kiss to his lips. He tasted like sweat and chalk. She pulled away quickly. “Fine, let’s fine a route.”

He released her and she brushed the chalk his hand had left behind on her loose purple tank top. Not that it really mattered, her black leggings were covered in chalk too. She found a 5.8 she had been eyeing earlier. It didn’t look too reachy, and had several large holds. It would be a nice easy route to finish on. 

“This one looks good,” Mara said as she began tying herself in. 

She took the gri-gri off her harness and passed it and the locking carabiner to Cullen. They’d fallen into an easy rhythm when they climbed, checking their knots and set up quickly before she moved to the wall. 

“On belay?” she asked, glancing to Cullen over her shoulder. 

He quickly adjusted his glasses and smiled. “Belay on.”

She turned back to the wall and pick out her first two handholds. “Climbing?”

“Climb on.” Came his quiet reply. 

She moved quickly, not pausing to long between moves. She had to stop about halfway up and chalk up her hands. Her arms ached, but she kept pushing through. The crux of the climb was near the top, something that Cullen would have probably been able to power through due to his height, but she had to think about it. 

She was too short to fully reach the next hold, and she could cheat on the route beside the one she was climbing, but instead she dyno-ed for the hold. Pushing off both of her feet and grasping for the hold above her. She caught it, and while her feet skidded off the smooth wall, she pulled herself up with her arms. 

She reached the top of the route tired, and feeling exhilarated. 

She looked down to Cullen and flashed him a thumbs up. He offered her a smile, “You’re at the top?”

She rolled her eyes and smacked the metal bar. “Yes, happy?”

And then the gym was plunged into darkness. 

Mara hadn’t gone anywhere, but it was terrifying to be hanging from the wall in the darkness. She grasped the rope with one hand and the wall with the other. It was silly, but somehow it seemed higher in the dark. 

“You okay?” Cullen asked. 

“I’m fine, want to lower me down?” 

Another voice called, “No. Stay up there until the lights come back on. Should just be a moment.”

Mara took a deep breath. “We’re pretty experienced, it wouldn’t be a big deal. And if you lower me without warning, Rutherford, I will kill you.”

“I won’t. I’ve got you. Just hold tight for a minute while they try to get the lights back on.” Cullen’s voice tried to be reassuring.

The song playing over the gym’s speaker system faded out, and Mara thought it was lucky that one of her favorite songs began to play. 

The familiar guitar notes calmed her.  _ “Oh how I long for the wind, it was here and blew away. And like an anchor in the sand, I was forced to stay. Ooooohh don’t leave me like this, I belong to you.” _

And then below her, the gym sparked to life. There were string lights hung around the alcove where they were climbing, but it was Cullen she couldn’t look away from. He was standing in the middle of a heart made out of string lights. 

This wasn’t happening. 

“You ready to come down?” he asked. 

Her fingers were shaking, but it was not from climbing. “Yes.”

Cullen lowered her slowly, while her heart hammered away. It was so loud she was sure he’d be able to hear it even from halfway up the wall. This wasn’t real, was it? Once her feet were safely on the ground, Cullen dropped to one knee and pulled a small box from his pocket. 

This wasn’t happening. 

“Mara Lavellan.” Cullen’s voice was thick with emotion as he gazed up at her, and opened the ring box. She could barely see anything through the blur of tears, she wiped at them, trying not to miss a second of the moment. She wasn’t sure what to do with her hands, with the fact she was still tied to that damn climbing wall.  

“Will you marry me?” The question was quiet, and so full of nervous hope. 

She was fully crying then, and trying to wipe the tears away with the backs of her hands. She began nodding furiously. “Yes.”

Cullen surged forward, shifting the rope away as his lips met hers. She could feel the relief in every line of his body, and the quiet joy too. Did he really think she wasn’t going to say yes?

Cheers erupted from the front desk area of the gym, and Mara pulled away with a smile to see Dorian, Bull, Cassandra, Sera, and Dagna along with the gym employees cheering. 

Well that answered the question as to how he’d done all of it. 

Cullen put only enough space between them so that he could take her hand and the ring from the box, he slid it on her finger and it didn’t go past the knuckle. It was a pretty silver band, made up of flowers and small diamonds. It wasn’t flashy or gaudy. It was perfect. 

“It’s so pretty, but my fingers are swollen,” she laughed and pulled her hand back. “Not to mention covered in chalk and who knows what else.”

He slipped it back into the box and handed it to her. “You like it?”

She stared into his golden eyes as he undid the figure-eight knot to release her from the wall. “I love it, and I love you.”

His answering smile was a thing of beauty just before he was nearly tackled by a Sera. 

“You’re getting married!” Sera yelled. 

It all hit Mara and she smiled, they were getting married. 


	29. Not as Sneaky as They Think

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Grisdoomette: Idk if you're still taking prompts, but could you write about the students finding out about Mara and Cullen? Maybe gossiping about it behind their backs and asking the other teachers.
> 
>  
> 
> So because I already had a prompt about the students finding out about Mara and Cullen I decided to do the students one. So we get a bit of Dorian’s POV, which was fun because I’ve never written him before. How can I have written in DA for almost two years and never written him. It was too fun. Anyway, this is sort of two part, and the next one will go up tomorrow. Thank you so much for the prompt!

Dorian tried not to keep glancing at the clock, but somehow it kept happening. He had two students in his classroom taking an exam they had missed due to a soccer game. Contractual time had ended ten minutes ago, and Bull didn’t have practice for once. 

Dorian had stupidly believed these two could get through their chemistry exam quickly. 

He had plenty of work to do. There was always grading, and he needed to redo the seating chart for fourth hour. There was nothing quite as magical as a new seating chart. It just always seemed to reset the entire energy in a room, and it made Dorian feel incredibly powerful. 

“Mr. Pavus?” one of the girls asked as she came up to his demo table. He was technically Dr. Pavus, though he wasn’t nearly pretentious enough as to ask his high school students to refer to him as such. They’d had a permanent substitute a few years back who had, and the students had completely resented them. 

Dorian looked up from his laptop. “Yes?”

“All finished.” She passed him the exam. 

“Thank you, Whitney,” Dorian replied and placed the test in his to-be-graded basket. He had a system, it went from the basket to being graded directly, or his folder if he was taking it home. Then once graded it went into the passback files. Dorian never lost assignments. It was something he prided himself on. 

The student was shifting back and forth on her feet. “Uh...Mr. Pavus...can I ask you a question?”

Dorian sat back in his chair to give Whitney his full attention. He wasn’t sure what her question was, but he had a few guesses. His relationship with Bull was no secret, and he was from Tevinter which often made the students quite curious. It was all fine and good, he’d fielded most questions over the years and had pre-rehearsed answers for them. It couldn’t be too bad though, since Cassidy was still testing not ten feet away. 

“Of course.”

Whitney looked more confident. “Well, it’s just...there have been some rumors…” Dorian braced himself for whatever was to come. 

She continued, “Are Ms. Lavellan and Mr. R dating?”

Dorian did a terrible of job of hiding his surprise because Whitney looked utterly deflated at his response. He was just surprised that she was asking, and had come to him of all people. 

“Um, why do you ask?” 

Mara and Cullen being together wasn’t exactly a secret, but they weren’t flaunting it either. Mara and Cullen seemed to be under the impression that because they stayed professional at work that was why the kids hadn’t figured it out after almost a year. The real reason was that most of the kids were too clueless to realize that Cullen and Mara were making doe eyes at each other every time they were in the same room, or that they seemed to always be together outside of class time.  

“I was here early taking the math test I missed, and I saw them get here in the same car,” Whitney explained. 

Well, they did live together, not that Dorian was about to tell Whitney that. It wasn’t his to tell. 

“Maybe one of them needed a ride?” Dorian offered. 

Whitney sighed. “Well are they dating or not?” 

Dorian smiled. “Maybe you should ask one of them.” 

She rolled her eyes. “Okay.”

He offered her some apology, “Sorry I’m not more help.”

Whitney just shrugged. “You said the same thing Mr. Tethras did.”

Dorian laughed. “What, are you asking all your teachers and then hoping to catch us in a lie?”

Cassidy walked over to his desk and handed him her test, pulling her long blonde hair over her shoulder. “You’re like the fourth person she’s asked.”

“Are you the only students interrogating your teachers?” Dorian asked. 

“Well…yeah, but everyone else thinks they’re dating too,” Whitney insisted. 

This line of conversation wasn’t going anywhere good. Dorian made a show of looking at the clock. “Well, I need to get out of here.”

The two girls nodded and began heading for the door. “Thanks Mr. Pavus!”

“Have a good day,” he called after them. 

Then he sent a few text messages off to remind Mara and Cullen that they were not nearly as sneaky as they believed themselves to be. 


	30. Annoying Perceptive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> IzzyB900 requested Cullen being totally flustered by a student asking about him and Mara. And it fit so well in the little arc we have going with the kids asking Dorian. So have a quick bit, and I’ll post how the kids found out later this afternoon. 600 words, Cullen’s POV.

Cullen was trying very hard to get through all of his grading during his prep hour,  but unfortunately the study hall instructor had sent a student down to his classroom. It was the third time that week. He usually didn’t mind, but he did have things he needed to get done beyond helping students with their research papers. Every time he had a reprieve he was working furiously at his desk, trying to get through as many exams as possible before he was interrupted again. 

“Mr. R?” the student asked. 

Yeah, he definitely needed to have a chat with the study hall instructor. 

He looked up from the exam he had been grading. “Yes?”

“How do you get into the database again?” Sean asked. “The username and password aren’t working.”

Cullen was really sick of that question. He’d even given the kids a little pink card to glue into their notebooks that listed step by step how to get to the database. He was pretty sure Sean hadn’t even looked at the card when Cullen had passed them out. 

He did his best not to be annoyed. “You don’t need a username or password if you’re on the school’s wifi. Just go through the online library.”

Sean nodded, and Cullen could see that he had just remembered that. Cullen had gotten pretty good at reading kids over the years and knowing whether or not they actually understood. It was clear to him that Sean had, which was good because Sean was not exactly one of Cullen’s favorite students. 

“Oh got it! Thanks Mr. R!” Sean said, turning his attention back to his computer. 

“No problem,” Cullen replied. 

Sean wasn’t a bad kid, but he was a bit of a pain to have in class. He very much liked to hear himself talk, and found it his sole responsibility to make the class entertaining. It was all made worse by the fact the kid had at least three friends in class just like him. Cullen tried to cut the kid some slack, and on his own like this it wasn’t so bad. 

From across the hall, Cullen heard a spill of laughter. He could hear Mara’s laughter mixed in with that of her students, the joyous roll of it and he smiled. She had a certain presence with her students that he rarely saw elsewhere. He hadn’t even realized he’d been staring and listening to what was happening in her classroom until Sean started laughing too. 

Cullen turned his attention back to the exam he was grading, realizing that he had graded the same three questions twice now. 

“Are you and Ms. L a thing?” Sean asked. 

Cullen tried to school the surprise in his expression. “A what now?”

Sean repeated himself. “A thing?” 

When Cullen still didn’t seem to understand he rolled his eyes. “You like her. Are you dating?”

“Maker’s breath,” Cullen breathed, completely flustered. “I don’t know why you’d ask that. She is my colleague, and a great teacher. But I...no...we’re just friends…” Cullen stopped when he realized he was sputtering. This kid was annoyingly perceptive. That or he was as obvious as Dorian always said he was.

“Right.” Sean was clearly unconvinced. 

Cullen tried not to glower or think of all the ways he could make Sean’s life hell. “Don’t you have an essay that’s due tomorrow?”

Sean made a show of getting back to work at his computer. “Sure do, Mr. R.”


	31. While It Lasted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Gangsterbee: Soooo... prompts! I can't decide between two, so hopefully one gets the gears turning. I'm thinking the kids finding out Cullen/Mara are dating/married, OR Cullen working on the house with Bran, re-connecting with his family? I feel like that last one may have been a thing but I may be mixing up Reparations with Class Act and no lie I'm way too lazy to look it up rn. It's 9:30 and I gotta be up at 5- being an adult, yay! And I don't want to forget and send nothing in! I <3 you too much.
> 
>  
> 
> I decided to go with the kids finding out that Cullen and Mara are dating. This would occur during Mara’s second year at Skyhold, early in the school year and after the previous two chapters.

Mara’s desk was covered in post-it notes, and she had at least four different to-do lists. One was for school related bits, another for homecoming week, another for the birthday party she was planning for Sera, and another just for general life things like grocery shopping. Her prep hour the day before had been a mess of starting one thing that felt high priority only to remember that something else required her attention and then starting on that. It was a vicious cycle, and she’d gotten very little done. 

Her students were in the middle of their journaling when she realized that she’d never made the copies for their assignment for the day. 

Shit. 

She tried to figure out how to fix it. The obvious solution was just to go up to the copy center and pray her class behaved while she was gone. She grabbed her original, which was on her counter ready to be made into copies because of course it was, when she remembered that Cullen was on prep. 

She’d learned that when the class was quiet and working, and if she was only going to be gone for a moment, it was best to just go. Don’t draw attention to it. Just go. 

“Hey, you super busy?” she asked by way of greeting as she walked into Cullen’s classroom. He was sitting at his desk, glasses set down, and scribbling away on his calendar. 

He put his glasses on as she came in. “Not really, why?”

She held up her original. “I forgot to make copies.”

Cullen stood, clearly understanding. “How many do you need?”

“Eighty. Need them for next hour too,” she said as he took the original from her. 

“I’ll get it done right now. You get back to your class,” Cullen said. 

She sighed. “Thank you.”

He paused pushing the sleeve of his shirt past the elbow. “Everything okay?”

“I’m just a little overwhelmed, that’s all.” It was true, usually things like this didn’t slip through the cracks. 

He gave her a look that told her she had maybe taken on too much at once. “Let me know if there’s more I can do?”

She nodded and they walked together until he turned to go up to the library, and she walked back into her class. The kids were mostly still working on their journal prompt, and most of them hadn’t even noticed she was gone. 

She cued up the powerpoint and settled in to talk about the Transcendentalists. A quick clip about the tiny house movement was playing when Cullen walked in with her copies. 

“Sorry the printer jammed or I’d have been here sooner,” he whispered, handing them to her. 

She smiled. “Thank you again.”

She leaned in and he pressed a quick peck to her lips. As soon as he pulled away she realized the mistake they’d made. The action was so familiar, so comfortable, they hadn’t even considered where they were or who was watching. And that they had just kissed in a classroom full of students. 

“I TOLD YOU!” one of the students shouted. 

Shit. 

She’d learned from her student council kids that most of the student body fell into one of three categories. There were the ones who were pretty damn sure she and Cullen were dating. There were the ones who believed that she and Cullen were just good friends. And then there were the ones who really didn’t give a shit either way.

The ambiguity surrounding their relationship had been a point of pride for them, but they’d just confirmed it without meaning to. 

Cullen blushed under his glasses all the way to the tips of his ears. “Well, it was a good run while it lasted.”

Mara sighed. “It was.”

The kids hadn’t taken their eyes off of them, and the few who had been paying attention to the clip had abandoned it completely. 

“How long?” one of the students asked in the half darkness. 

Mara crossed her arms. “None of your business.”

One of the student council members rolled her eyes. “It’s about damn time.” There was some nodding and murmuring of approval from the students. 

Cullen rubbed his neck. “Thank you for that, Caroline. I’m going to get back to my classroom.”

Mara patted his shoulder awkwardly. “Sounds good.”

There were several female students beaming. One of them looked at Mara and said, “We’ve been saying that you should date for like ever.”

“But you said you had a boyfriend!” another accused. 

Mara laughed. “I did!” And she pointed towards Cullen’s classroom. 

Mara began passing out the copies Cullen had brought it. “Now, let’s get back on track. Who can tell me what characteristics of Transcendentalism the Tiny House Movement exhibits?” 


	32. On Trial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> @beccaboo8810 wanted to know what ended up happening to Calpernia at the end of Class Act. I hope this helps answer that. 1k, Mara’s POV.

Mara believed that the Securities and Exchange Commission trial would have been more exciting than it was. She’d envisioned some big courtroom and facing down a jury or something. In reality it had been a judge and several lawyers in a small, bland room. She’d been called as a witness to testify on Calpernia’s behalf, and it was the least she could do after everything. 

Mara tried to resist checking her phone in the waiting room of the courthouse. She’d taken a day off, unsure how long the whole thing would take, and kept looking at her phone and thinking about what class hour it was. She kept worrying about her sub plans, and if third hour was going to go alright. 

Those thoughts swirled through her head until a tired looking legal assistant retrieved her and led her into the small conference looking room, and pointed her to a chair at the head of the conference table. 

“Please state your name for the record,” one of the lawyers said, looking up from a pile of paperwork. 

Calpernia looked as calm as ever, and offered Mara a small smile as she sat down. Mara cleared her throat. She was nervous, and couldn’t imagine how Calpernia might be feeling. 

“Mara Lavellan.”

“Thank you. And you are a teacher at Skyhold High School?” the same lawyer asked. She was seated next to Calpernia, looking just as put together in her dark suit and red hair pulled back sharply. 

Mara nodded. “That’s correct.”

“My client contends that the information she provided was done in defense of your school. Can you please explain that?” 

Mara took a deep breath, and willed herself to calm down. “Yes. Skyhold was in danger of being shut down and purchased by Corypheus’s company.” 

“The defense would like to make sure that the company is known as Corypheus Incorporated LLC,” the lawyer interjected.

The judge nodded and glanced to the stenographer. “Noted.”

The lawyer gave Mara a reassuring smile, “Please continue.”

“Um. Well, he was going to purchase the school from the district, and the information that Calpernia shared at the school board meeting changed their minds. The information showed that the schools were paying for services that weren’t being provided, and that he was the owner of the private company.”

A lawyer from the other side spoke up next. “I’d like to point out conjecture on the part of the witness. The fraud has not yet been proved in a court of law.”

Calpernia’s lawyer bristled. “The witness has not shared her opinion, but her knowledge of the evidence.”

The judge waved a hand. “Dismissed. The defense can continue.”

“Ms. Lavellan, was the delivery of the evidence a time sensitive matter?” Calpernia’s lawyer asked. 

Mara folded her arms to keep from fidgeting with them. “Yes. The school board was making a decision that night.” 

“So if Calpernia hadn’t shared that evidence, the outcome might have been very different?” the lawyer asked. 

Mara nodded. “I believe it would have resulted in the complete opposite decision by the school board, which would likely have been catastrophic for my school.”

The lawyer gave Mara a smile. “No more questions.”

The judge looked to the lawyers on the other side of the table. “Does the prosecution have any questions?”

One of the three lawyers stood. He wore a charcoal suit and his dark hair was slicked back. “Yes. Mrs. Lavellan, when the information was shared, did you get the impression that Calpernia knew of the legality of her actions?” 

“Yes. She seemed to understand that what she was doing was illegal, but did it to help our school. Due to the time sensitive nature of the whole thing,” Mara responded. 

“So, according to your understanding, she knew full well she was breaking the law by sharing the information?” the lawyer asked. 

Mara glanced to Calpernia apologetically. “Yes.”

“That is all,” the lawyer said, unbuttoning the top button of his suit as he sat back down. 

The judge checked his watch and then turned to Mara. “Thank you for your time, Ms. Lavellan. Let’s go ahead and take a recess for lunch.” 

Mara let out a sigh of relief, and stood. Calpernia walked over to her and signalled to the door. She didn’t begin talking until they were far beyond it. “Thank you for coming.”

Mara tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I don’t know if anything I said actually helped.”

Calpernia shrugged. “I appreciate you coming either way.”

“What’s going to happen to you?” Mara asked. 

“Well, my lawyer is trying to prove that I broke the law for a good cause. Most likely they’ll hit me with a decent sized fine. Jail time is really unlikely,” Calpernia replied. 

Mara felt a bit of relief. “That’s at least something. I’m sorry you’re in this position.”

“It’s alright. My whole life right now is lawyers and courthouses. Corypheus’s trial is ongoing,” Calpernia stopped near the end of the hallway. 

“How is that going?” Mara asked, afraid to even know. 

Calpernia sighed. “The evidence I obtained was deemed admissible, and then his lawyers called for the whole thing to be deemed fruit of the tainted tree. Turns out though, the SEC was already investigating him. So the judge deemed that the rest of the evidence would have been found anyway.”

“That’s good right?”

“Mostly. It’ll be in litigation for a long time, but I think both Corypheus and Samson will do some time,” Calpernia explained, and then her voice fell to nearly a whisper. “When they searched Samson’s apartment they found it full of lyrium.”

“Surprise, surprise.”

“Even if he gets off on everything else  _ that _ means time.” Calpernia inclined her head for emphasis. 

“So, after this, what will you do?” Mara asked. 

Calpernia smiled. “I’m going back to Tevinter, and I’m going to try to undo some of what Corypheus did there.”

“Well, if you need anything -” 

“I know who to call. Thank you again,” Calpernia touched Mara’s elbow lightly, and then walked away back to where her lawyer waited. 

Mara waved a little lamely and checked her phone again. It was lunchtime at Skyhold, so she called Cullen. 

He picked up before the second ring. “How’d it go?”

“Oh have I got stuff to tell you,” she said as she started for the stairs to leave the courthouse.


	33. Eight Days

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Mysdrym: Could you do a beach trip with Mara, Cullen, and Argos sometime? For a prompt for A Class Act?
> 
> Thank you so much for this prompt! It was a fun one to write, and try to remember the ‘ugh wedding planning is the worst’ feeling.

The wedding countdown had hit single digits, which also meant that the office at the house was overrun with everything wedding. They had agreed on simple, but it turned out that simple still meant way more planning than he or Mara enjoyed. Once the school year had ended it seemed like everything had suddenly become wedding-related. 

Not that he minded. Much. 

Mara was on the phone with Mia, again. She was laying on the floor of the office, looking like she was trying to have patience for whatever it was Mia had decided was very important. Simple they had said. A simple backyard wedding. 

His sister wasn’t exactly helping keep it so, though Mara had more patience for it than he did. Argos was curled up next to Mara, laying in the patch of sunlight just to her left with his head on her stomach. Mara hadn’t yet gotten out of her pajamas for the day, and her hair was still wavy from sleep. 

“Okay, we can do that.” Mara pinched the bridge of her nose. 

There was silence as Mia no doubt gave more instructions for whatever Mara was agreeing to. 

“Uh huh. Okay. I’ll call you later then.” 

Mara then hung up the phone, tossing it away so that it landed above her on the carpet. Argos stirred a bit at the sound, but otherwise didn’t move. 

“I love your sister, but she is making this whole thing more complicated than it needs to be,” Mara said at last, looking up from her position on the ground. 

“I’m sorry?” he offered. “I did warn you when she offered to help.”

Mara sighed. “You did.”

Cullen glanced out the window. It was still fairly early, and so he smiled. “I have a plan.”

Mara sat up, rubbing Argos behind the ears for disturbing him. “What?”

“Beach day.”

Argos immediately perked up, but Mara shook her head. “We have stuff to do, in fact your sister just added things to our to do list.”

Cullen ran his hand along the doorframe. “We cram twelve months worth of responsibility into nine. It will not be the end of the world if we put it off for a day.”

Mara glared up at him. “Who are you and what have you done with my fiancee?”

“I’m serious.” 

Her eyes narrowed. “So am I.”

“Well, Argos and I are going. You’re invited if you want to come,” Cullen said, making his way down the hall towards the garage to get the cooler and load up the car. 

He could hear Mara following him. “You really are serious.”

Cullen glanced over his shoulder. “Very.”

Mara beamed. “Let’s go.”

***

The beach was a little over an hours drive from the house, but it had been a pleasant one. Mara had turned on some music, and they’d sung all the way down the highway. Argos had paced back and forth in the back seat, moving between both windows. They’d had to search a bit, for a beach the allowed for dogs, but it was worth it. So was the wrath they’d inevitably face from Mia. They’d played for a bit in the water with Argos, tossing a frisbee back and forth among the crashing waves. When they had all tired out, they’d retreated into the shade of their umbrella. 

Mara sat beside him, floppy straw hat on her head and halfway through the book she’d brought with her. Her feet were buried in the sand, and she looked as relaxed as she deserved to be. He’d brought his own book, trying to chip away at his summer reading list. 

Mara noticed his stare. “What?”

He took her hand. “I’m just thinking about how today is a pretty perfect one.”

“You’re a cheeseball, Rutherford.” It was a familiar accusation, and one he never had any problem with. For all of her talk to the contrary, he knew she loved it. 

“How’s the book?” he asked. 

She smiled. “So good. Worth the inevitable lecture that Mia is going to give us on its own.”

“Just ignore her phone calls for a day or two.” 

“Great, then she’ll drive all the way up here. No thank you,” Mara replied, turning her attention back to her book. 

“Eight days.” He said the words quietly, they had been uttering the day count for nearly a month now. And the knowing smile Mara always gave him was one of his favorite things. 

“Eight days.” She leaned over to kiss him, tilting her hat back so their lips could meet. 

And then Argos saw a kite land on the ground near them and took off in a spray of sand, knocking their umbrella over and nearly them as well. 


	34. Starlight and Expectations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from Stregatadallostregatto: Hello!!! It's such a great thing you're taking prompts... and since I love your writing, may I request Cullen X Mara A Class Act AU ... honeymoon night? Or first day together in their home as husband and wife? Or their first fight as a married couple? Thank you so much!
> 
> First of all, thank you so so much for the prompts! I decided to go with their honeymoon night, but it’s not NSFW. There’s all these expectations surrounding the wedding night, and honestly, there shouldn’t be. Weddings are a lot of work, and exhausting! I don’t know about anyone else, but once my husband and I got to the cabin we were spending our honeymoon at we were starving and so tired. While we ate the crepes our caterer had sent with us we both just sort of looked at each other and went “Do you mind if we don’t?” And then we went to bed. So anyway, Cullen and Mara’s wedding night. 1200 words, Mara’s POV.

Both moons were high in the sky as Mara and Cullen finally pulled away from Mia’s house. Their friends and family had seen them off, waving as they got into Cullen’s car. Mara couldn’t remember a more perfect day, or being more exhausted. 

She wasn’t sure when it had happened over the course of the night, but it was clear that their friends had slipped away to decorate their car. The back window boasted a sign saying Just Married, but it was the small lewd drawings that were clearly Sera’s doing that had Cullen totally flustered. 

“We need to wash those off immediately,” Cullen said he drove down the long dark driveway to the main road. 

Mara laughed. “I think they’re hilarious.”

“We’re going to get arrested for public indecency,” Cullen replied. 

“It’s nearly one in the morning. Let’s worry about it later.” Mara reached for his hand, and his warm palm settled against hers. 

“We do have a cabin to get to,” Cullen smirked, but Mara could see the exhaustion in his eyes. 

Mara gave him a tired nod. “We do indeed. How far is it?” 

“Not far, less than an hour.” Cullen turned the car onto the highway. 

“Perfect.” Mara watched the dark farmland along the highway slip by, there was only the occasional car that passed them. Yellow lights from houses glowed in the distance, becoming fewer and fewer as they reached the foothills and dropped down a hill to be swallowed in the darkness of the canyon. 

Their car climbed the narrow and winding road for what felt like a long time, and then finally they turned off the main road onto a small dirt road barely wide enough for one car. They felt their way slowly up in the darkness, and then in the distance a small light glowed through the trees. 

“Here we are,” Cullen said as he brought the car to a stop in front of the small cabin. It was Matthew’s family’s cabin, and he’d lent it to them for their honeymoon. She and Cullen had decided on something short and close by, with a bigger trip at the beginning of August. Mara was feeling exhausted enough that she realized that had been a really good idea. 

“It’s perfect,” Mara grinned, getting out of the car. She held the long skirt of her dress up so that it didn’t drag on the ground. 

Cullen had already grabbed both of their suitcases, and was locking up the car. Through the tangle of tree branches above them Mara could see the stars, bright and undimmed by any surrounding lights or air pollution. 

“Wow,” she said, she might be content to just lay there under the stars despite how much cooler it was up the canyon. 

Cullen stared up with her. “I forget sometimes how pretty it is up here.”

“‘But if a man be alone, let him look at the stars...every night come out these envoys of beauty, and light the universe with their admonishing smile.’” She was sure she had messed up a word or two in the quote, but it had simply come to mind. 

Cullen pressed a kiss to her temple. “Thoreau or Emerson?”

She smiled. “Emerson.” They stayed like that for a few more moments until she shivered against the cold breeze that blew through the canyon. 

“You must be freezing, let’s get you inside,” Cullen murmured. She must have looked reluctant because he added, “Tomorrow I’ll take you to very cool spot, way better stargazing than here.”

“You’ve got a deal, Rutherford.” 

The cabin was small, just two rooms a bathroom and a kitchen. There was a sitting area by a fire, and it was clear Mia had been there. There was champagne with a bow around it and two glasses on the table. It was all golden wood and cozy as could be. 

Cullen set the suitcases down, and rubbed the back of his neck. “You like it?” 

She smiled. “Yes, very much so.”

He breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. It’s not the fanciest, but it’s ours for the weekend.”

“Seems like Mia really outdid herself.” 

Cullen nodded. “How much you want to bet the fridge is fully stocked?”

“I’d put all my money on it.” They were right; Mia really had thought of everything. 

Mara walked into the bathroom, her head was aching. Her hair was done up soft and elegant, but the amount of pins required to achieve that had been ridiculous. She began pulling them out one by one. 

“Need some help?” Cullen asked softly from the doorway. 

Mara nodded. “Yes, my head hurts.”

He moved behind her, standing closer than was strictly necessary. He plucked pins out slowly, adding them to the growing pile on the counter. Once her hair was free it tumbled over her shoulders in soft curls. Cullen shifted her hair over one shoulder and pressed a kiss to her neck, while one hand trailed over the length of her back her dress exposed. She watched him in the mirror, the slow and deliberate movements. She pressed back into him, letting her eyes fall shut. She was so so tired. 

Cullen’s arms settled around her. “Would you mind if we just went to bed?” 

He asked the question tentatively. She opened her eyes, entirely surprised by his question. She was honestly relieved. She’d been up late the night before, not that she would have been able to sleep otherwise. Bed sounded really really good. 

“Not at all,” Mara admitted. 

Cullen’s arms tightened around her. “Thank the Maker; I’m exhausted.” 

Mara twisted in his arms. “One condition.”

Cullen’s mouth quirked up. “And what is that?”

“Cuddling.” 

He kissed her then, lips soft and sweet and completely unhurried. She buried her fingers in his dress shirt, while his slipped into her hair. He pulled way first, brushing his nose against hers. “Deal, wife.”

Wife. It was ridiculous how a single word could completely fluster her. She giggled and Cullen’s eyes were bright as he realized just the effect the word had on her. 

She pushed him out of the bathroom. “Let’s get ready for bed, husband.”

His answering smile was radiant. 

They fell into their familiar nightly routine, moving around each other in the smaller bathroom as they got ready and changed. Mara had settled into the large soft bed just as Cullen flicked off the light and slid in beside her. Their arms and legs tangled around each other as they fought for contact against exhausted limbs. Mara’s head was resting on his chest, listening to the solid beat of his heart. 

“Guess what?” she whispered softly into the darkness. 

“Hmmmm?” Came Cullen’s sleep filled reply. 

“We’re married.” She smiled against his chest, and curled even closer into him. 

Cullen kissed her hair, and she could hear the joy in his tired voice. “We are.” 


	35. Professional Development and Zombies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So for the follower celebration @thesecondsealwrites sent me the sentence prompt “Afternoon, zombies.” I switched it just a bit, but I think I stuck with the spirit of the prompt. Also this whole thing made me laugh, and hopefully it’s funny to other folks too. I’ve had too many early mornings and meetings and professional development days that were at least as silly as this to not write about one. 600 words, Cullen’s POV.

The first parent-teacher conference of the year was always the busiest, and therefore the worst one. Parents inevitably decided it was their duty to go and support their students, which was a good thing. But they’d barely had enough time during the new school year to really have grades post. And it didn’t help that the schedule for them was awful. They spent an entire day at school teaching, and then four more hours after that for the conferences. And it all happened on a Monday. The only good thing about it this year was that they had a professional development day on Tuesday. It meant no kids, and that was almost like a day off. Almost.

Cullen scrubbed a hand down his face and sipped at his coffee. Beside him, Mara wasn’t faring much better. They’d barely spoken that morning, which was unusual. Usually after she started on her coffee she perked up enough for conversation. They’d driven from the house in silence, barely speaking as they entered the school and made their way together to the Sun Room. Cullen didn’t mind  that though; silence wasn’t uncomfortable with Mara. Sometimes just being in each other’s presence was enough, even when they were both too tired to speak. 

Leliana could have at least done them all a favor and started thirty minutes later than usual. She didn’t, but she also hadn’t talked with parents about curriculum for four hours the night before. 

Mara glanced around the still mostly empty Sun Room, and seemed to be getting incredibly distraught. “I thought there was going to be food.”

Dorian had saved them spots at his table, and he rolled his eyes as they shuffled over. “Morning, zombies.”

Mara laid her head down on the table. “UGH. You’re not a morning person either, why are you so damn put together this morning?”

Cullen noticed that Dorian was strangely more energetic than he was most mornings. “Do we want to know the answer to that?”

Dorian chuckled. “No. I’ll just say that I’ve been up for quite a while.”

Between them Mara groaned. “You are the worst.”

Dorian looked at Mara’s unmoving form. “What’s wrong, did you switch her to decaf?”

Cullen couldn’t contain a smirk as he replied, “No. I’ll just say that we were up for quite a while last night.”

Dorian threw his head back in laughter, while Mara rose up from the table to glare at him from under an impressive blush. “I take it back. Rutherford, you are the worst.”

“I’m sure that’s not what you said last night,” Dorian quipped. 

Mara rounded on him and somehow turned even redder. “I hate you.”

“I love you, too,” Dorian replied, smiling when Mara scowled.

Bull had taken the seat next to Dorian, and was carefully assessing the situation. “Isn’t it too early to be teasing Mara this morning?”

Mara didn’t look at any of them. “Apparently not.”

“It would seem it’s not too early for a lot of things,” she added, finally joining in on the jokes. 

Bull’s laugh was so loud the entire Sun Room quieted. “And you accuse me of being indiscreet, Kadan.”

Dorian ran a hand down his face as he noticed the attention of the entire room on them. “Yes, and you’re doing it now, Amatus.”


	36. Bad Tests

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from SaibraRutheford: Given how much Mara loves her kids, I wonder how she would react to something like what happened during May's GCSE English exams in England: a paper asked pupils to explain why Tybalt from Romeo and Juliet hated the Capulets.
> 
> So I do not have any sort of experience with GCSE exams, since things are different in the states. So, going with what I’m familiar with, this is going to be an Advanced Placement test, which determines college credit for a high school class. Which means the stakes are pretty high. Mara would literally be like...I am a teacher in the last month of school and this is literally the last thing I need right now. And then she’d do her best to fix it, but in my experience, things aren’t always this cut and dry. But it’s fiction, so I get to make things the way I want them to be, even if that’s not always how it works. 1k words, Mara’s POV.

Mara had been worried about how her AP Literature kids would do on the exam. It had been a normal bit of stress all school year. Had she prepared them well enough? Had she made the right decisions on the literature to study? Had she provided them with enough feedback, enough practice tests? She’d been stressing about it since August, kept pushing it away and telling herself that she was doing all she could. But when the day for the test arrived? She couldn’t find much calm. 

The morning of the test she had a waffle breakfast for her kids in her classroom. Cullen had helped her make the waffles while her kids had hung out in her room ahead of the test. She’d wished them luck just as the bell rang, and then spent her empty first hour cleaning up from the breakfast and trying not to worry about how the kids were doing. It wasn’t like she was going to get the results until mid-summer anyway. 

Her third hour was just finishing up their reader’s theater style reading of a scene from A Raisin in the Sun and Mara was getting ready to lead the class discussion of the scene when several of her AP students came into her room. 

“Can we talk to you Ms. L?” Lisa asked. 

She nodded and directed them to the hallway so that her class could finish up the scene undisturbed. It was an important one, and she didn’t want the kids distracted at the end when Walter leaves without saying a word to Ruth. 

“What’s up?” she asked. If they were worried about their performance on the test she wasn’t sure if she had many assurances to give them. 

“Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet is a Capulet, right?” Lisa asked. 

Mara nodded. “Yes. He’s Juliet’s cousin.”

The group of students in the hallway was getting larger while Lisa explained. “The AP test asked why he hated the Capulets, which implies he was a Montague.”

The students in the hallway murmured their agreement with worried eyes. “You’re sure that’s what the question said?”

The kids nodded. “Yes.”

Well, shit. And technically they weren’t really supposed to discuss the content of the test at all. “Let me make some phone calls.”

Lisa looked worried. “Do you think this will affect our scores?”

“If it is mistake it shouldn’t. Don’t worry, we’ll make sure it’s set right.” She wanted to believe that, and that the world was fair and that if they’d gotten something wrong it would get fixed. 

Several of her kids didn’t look like they really believed her. So she added. “Go home and rest, and don’t worry about it. I’ll hopefully have some good news tomorrow.”

Her students slowly filtered away as she came back into her classroom, and she felt like she needed to do something immediately. Her students had finished the seen were talking amongst themselves as she came in. 

“In your tables I want you to discuss Walter’s leaving and Mama’s reaction? Why does she call him a disgrace to his father’s memory?” she said as she walked over to her phone. The kids turned to their neighbors and were mostly on task as Mara dialed Leliana’s extension. They were going to get it fixed. 

***

Mara and Leliana had spent hours and hours on the phone over the next twenty-four hours. Mara had contacted other AP teachers to see if they were aware, and to try to get them organized as a group. 

Mara had just gotten off the phone when Cullen walked into her empty classroom. He’d been almost as stressed out over it as she was, especially since the AP History exam was the very next day. 

“You need to see this,” Cullen said, handing her his tablet. 

“What?” she asked as she took it. It was open to a news story. All about the AP English test. Mara and Leliana had been working through the most official channels to try and get things fixed, but it looked like some teachers in the Marches hadn’t been that patient. They’d gone to the media, and it was an onslaught of negative press. 

“It says they’re considering throwing out the question, though it will skew their algorithms,” Cullen explained. 

Mara put the tablet down. “That’s exactly what I’ve been arguing for since yesterday.”

“Look at the comments section,” Cullen moved around her desk and scrolled to the bottom of the article. “Already 300 comments, and this thing has only been live for less than an hour.”

She looked up at him and smiled. “Well they’re not going to be able to ignore that.”

Mara’s phone rang and she picked it up. “This is Ms. Lavellan.”

It was Leliana on the other line. “Just got a call back from the board, apparently there’s a news story now and they’re going to throw out the question.”

Mara wanted to cheer, and jump up and down, but she was also exhausted. “Note to self: next time go straight to the news media.”

“Clearly. Well at least it’s done,” Leliana replied. 

“Thank you for your help,” Mara said.

“Of course.”

Mara hung up the phone and looked up at Cullen. “They’re throwing out the question.”

“You mean they did something that made sense?” Cullen asked around a grin. 

Mara nodded. “Apparently, now let’s get out of here.”

“Don’t you have grading?” 

Mara stood up and pressed a quick peck to his lips. “Screw it. Let’s go.”

“Teachers in Bloomingtide making bad decisions.” His hands settled on her waist. 

“Always.”


	37. Another First Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> MrsBlonde over here requested the first day of school with the kiddos. Thank you for the prompt! For those of you keeping track this would occur about 6 years after the epilogue in A Class Act. 600 words, Mara’s POV.

It wasn’t nearly as frantic of a morning as Mara had expected it to be. Though she still wasn’t exactly sure how the years had flown by so quickly. She was making three lunches, the new and nearly pristine princess lunchbox was the one she packed with the most care. 

Cullen was still trying to explain to Hadley that her backpack was for school things and that she couldn’t pack it up full of toys. She’d left him to handle that particular conversation. He’d gotten a sub for his first hour, absolutely refusing to miss taking Hadley to her first day of kindergarten. First hour was one of her preps, so she’d not had to worry about it. She’d dropped a few of her classes at Vivienne’s request and taken on the responsibilities of being the district’s literacy coordinator. Vivienne had tried to talk her into doing it full time, but the best part of her job was her students. She couldn’t just let that go. 

She could hear Hadley’s giggle as she and Cullen rounded the corner. Hadley’s blonde curls were already a mess despite her attempts to tame them this morning. Hadley had a certain hatred of the hairbrush, and so Mara found she had to pick her battles. 

“Who’s ready to go to school?” Mara asked as they entered the kitchen. 

“I am!” Hadley yelled. 

“Shhhh…” Cullen pressed a finger to his lips before he kissed Mara on the temple. “You’ll wake Owen.”

There was little chance of that. Owen, who was three, was their champion sleeper; he slept heavy and hard. Which was good because Varric’s nickname for Hadley was Banshee. 

The front door opened, and Kait entered. Kait was a former student, and Mara was pretty sure she was the best nanny on the planet. Kait hadn’t quite figured out what she wanted to do with her life yet, but Mara was grateful because it meant they had someone they trusted with the kids. Hadley was running to her as soon as she realized Kait was there. 

“Good morning!” Kait smiled, nodding to Mara and Cullen as she entered and Hadley chattered on about going to school and everything Kait had missed in the few months she hadn’t seen her. 

“Good to see you, Kait,” Mara said as she slipped the princess lunchbox into the bright pink princess backpack. It was ironic. She and Cullen had purposefully avoided all princess-y things with Hadley, but as soon as she was able to assert her own opinion it had been all pink and princesses all the time. Something that her various adopted aunts and uncles hadn’t helped with. 

“Owen still asleep?” Kait asked as Cullen helped Hadley into her backpack. 

Mara grabbed her own work bag. “Yes, you know how he is. Hadley will be dropped off a little after noon, and then we’ll be home as close to three as possible.”

Kait nodded. “Sounds good. Have a good first day.”

“Hey Hads, we ready to go?” Mara asked. 

Hadley was nearly bursting. “Yes! To school! Come on dad!”

Cullen shook his head at her enthusiasm, but he it was all behind a smile. “Well then we better go. Thank you, Kait.”

Kait was pulling open a book and settling in on the couch as she gave them a wave. Hadley was already in the garage, getting into the car. 

“I don’t know where she gets all this enthusiasm about going to school from,” Cullen grinned as they followed behind her. 

“Mom! HURRY!” Hadley called from the backseat of the car. 

Mara was smiling too. “Couldn’t possibly be from her teacher parents.”

“Well, it’s certainly not from her boring history teacher of a father.”

Mara laughed, it was an old joke between them now. “Come on Rutherford, we have to get us to school too.”


	38. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes when you've been away from a place and return is when you realize just how much it means.

Mara was shocked as the sense of homecoming washed over her as they dropped down into the valley. Their car had just moved slowly around the last curve of the canyon, and then valley slid into view. The green fields and hills sprawled out around and ahead of them, and Denerim stood off in the distance obscured in the sunlight by ocean haze. And it was home. 

It was a feeling that could only have been felt after absence. She and Cullen had been at Mia’s for the weekend to visit and escape the Denerim heat. He sat beside her, one hand on the steering wheel, the other grasping hers. They sat in comfortable silence, the newest album from one of her favorite artists playing through the speakers. 

She kept her eyes trained out the window, could see the SH on the far mountain come into view. The two lane highway wasn’t busy as they moved along it, and Mara couldn’t quite get over how she knew each and every curve and dip, each sign along the way declaring ‘Scenic Byway’. She knew the fresh raspberry stands, and that the gas station they passed was the last one for at least twenty-five miles. 

And the mountains. Her mountains. She loved South Reach, but the mountains didn’t rise up with quite the same staggering height. Snow still remained in places above the treeline, and they were covered in the deepest of greens otherwise. She knew it wouldn’t last long, that as August arrived the hills would turn slowly brown ahead of autumn and then they’d explode into reds, oranges, and yellows. 

They passed the Western Thedas Heritage Center, the corn field green and rising slowly out of the ground in preparation for their fall corn maze. She and Cullen had gone together the year before with Sera and Dagna, and Sera had too much fun switching the signs that said entrance and exit and confusing folks. She smiled a bit at the memory, at the life she’d built. 

“What are you thinking about?” Cullen asked, his voice quiet over the beat of the music. 

It took effort to tear her eyes from the stretch of green fields outside her window. “How much this place feels like home.”

Cullen’s eyes didn’t stray from the road, but she could see the corners of his mouth stretch up. He squeezed her hand. “It does?”

It had been just over a year since she’d moved in with him, since she’d decided to stay in Denerim for at least another year. They’d been married for less than a month, and their house had always felt like home, but Denerim? Denerim had been a place. Somehow in the last two years it had found a way into her heart though, and she was surprised at just how right it felt. 

“Yes,” she replied, working to not get too emotional as she thought about it. For a long time, Wycome had been home. Or at least as close to a home that she had. It had shifted after her parents died, shifted even more after she’d moved back there for a teaching job. She’d stopped calling it home, given up hope on having one again. She’d never quite expected the rural farm towns on the far side of the valley from the city of Denerim to be something she considered hers.

This place was theirs, with memories gilded in laughter and love. 

Cullen turned early, down the road that led to Bull and Dorian’s. They’d taken Argos for the weekend, and that had worked out well because he’d never done as well in Mia’s unfenced yard as Branson’s mabari, David. 

“I love you,” Cullen said simply. There was so much emotion contained in those three words. Awe, and wonder, and every bit of hope and courage she’d stayed in Denerim for. She never forgot that it had been a choice, a conscious decision on her part to stay with Cullen, and now it seemed silly to have ever considered something else. 

“I love you, too.” She lifted their intertwined fingers, and pressed a kiss to his knuckles. The windows were rolled up, but she could smell the fresh cut grass, could almost hear the sprinklers that ran in the bright evening. 

Home. She was home. 


	39. The Tall and the Short of it

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It seems like a lot of people write OTPs with height differences, but very few actually think about what that means for sex. As a very short person (5′2″) married to a very tall person (6′2″), we’ve found that certain positions aren’t exactly compatible with our heights. And that’s fine because you get creative and you try things that don’t work and you laugh about it, and that’s all part of the fun. Written for @thesecondsealwrites #sexlaughterhonesty week, Coitus Ridiculous day. 
> 
> Set Post-Satinalia in A Class Act, Mara x Cullen, Cullen’s POV. 800 words. NSFW.

They’d barely made it through the door before Mara was kissing him, and they’d both dropped their bags somewhere in the vicinity of the kitchen. Cullen was pretty sure that he was spectacularly underdressed, as Mara’s fingers had been working quickly to divest him of his clothing. It wasn’t that he minded, but Maker, he wanted to feel Mara’s skin too. 

Her lips were pressed against his, soft but insistent. He supposed this was mostly his fault, in the ten minutes or so between her alarms this morning he’d passed the time running his hands over her skin. He’d traced patterns with his fingers and kissed down the exposed area of her back, and she’d just emerged into enough wakefulness to reciprocate the touches when her second alarm had gone off. She had an IEP and couldn’t linger in bed, and had been throwing frustrated looks at him all day. 

If this was his punishment, he’d take it. He continued kissing her, fingers sweeping across the skin he’d exposed by pushing her sweater up. He broke contact just long enough to pull the garment away, and then kissing down the column of her neck. His pants were somewhere along their path from the door to the living room, and her clever fingers had freed his cock, fingers slowly pumping him. 

He groaned as he moved back to her mouth, tongue tangling with hers. He buried one hand in her hair, while he removed her bra with the other. Once he’d tossed her bra away he’d gathered her against him, enjoying the way her skin felt against his. Her fingers had moved to his back, and she moved her nails down in a slow, tantalizing drag. 

“You know, if this is revenge for this morning, I’m not sure it’s going to have the desired effect,” he panted against her skin. 

She peppered kisses over his chest. “I’ve been thinking about this all day.”

He helped her out of her jeans. “Have you now?”

She scowled. “You know I have.”

He grinned as she handed him a condom from the end table drawer. Mara turned around and bent over the back of the couch like an offering. 

He positioned himself behind her, kissing his way up her spine. “This is new.”

Mara tossed him a look over her shoulder. “You were the one who said you wanted to take me over the back of the couch the other day.”

Maker’s breath, he had said that. They’d been talking about the different ways they wanted to explore one another, and new things they wanted to try together. Their physical relationship was still new, and they were still learning one another, still careful. He’d thought about this more than he wanted to admit. 

He let his hands travel to her stomach, skimming over the soft skin until he was cupping her breasts. He rolled a nipple between his fingers, faced pressed into her neck and drinking in every gasp and moan as he rutted against her. His erection was a hard press between them. 

He wanted more, and put just enough space between them to align them. And then he realized that they had a bit of problem. He was too tall. Or she was too short. Either way they had a problem. He bent his legs and widened his stance a bit, holding to her waist as he brushed her folds with his erection. 

“Having some trouble there?” she asked, wriggling back at him in a tease. 

He rested his forehead against her shoulder and failed to stifle a laugh. “Our heights are not very conducive to this position.”

She let out a breathy chuckle. “If you’re able to use the word conducive right now, I have not done a very good job of distracting you.”

He squeezed Mara’s breast until her breath caught. “I just need you a little higher if we could get the -”

“Damnit Rutherford, if you say step stool, I will kill you.” 

He laughed out loud then, arms wrapping tightly around her. “You don’t think that would be sexy?”

She twisted in his arms, and pressed onto her tiptoes to kiss him. “No, but I think we should table this position for another day. Next time I’ll wear those black heels you like so much.”

He hauled her up against him. “Did you you say something about table?”

She was laughing as he carried her into the kitchen. 

 


	40. Chapter 40

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I’m pretty sure that ranting and being a teacher sort of goes hand in hand. There are many days during the school year (and during the summer if we’re being honest) that we teachers sit down and rant to each other about one thing or another. One of those things is the fact I live in a state that teaches abstinence only education. The statistics are clear, and abstinence only education actually leads to higher cases of teen pregnancy and STIs. Anyway, for this year’s “Let’s Talk About Sex” day for @thesecondsealwrites #sexlaughterhonesty week, have some Cullen and Mara and just this. 
> 
> Cullen x Mara, A Class Act AU, Cullen’s POV, 600 words. SFW.

Cullen hadn’t said a word in the last five minutes of the car ride home from Skyhold, and he hadn’t needed to, as Mara was passionately explaining her stance on abstinence only education. There’d been some news story that afternoon that had set her off, and she’d been talking as if he didn’t agree with every word she said. 

“It’s just so frustrating to me because these parents are all worried that maybe we teach them about safe sex they’re going to have sex! Newsflash! Teenagers are going to have sex anyway! So we might as well prepare them for it, and arm them with correct information!” Mara’s hands were moving as she talked, and Cullen had found that she kept going with very little participation from him. Which wasn’t a bad thing, since the roads were slick with snow that had been falling all day. 

“There was this girl I went to college with from some backwoods Ferelden town that never taught her anything about sex and she got pregnant during student teaching. I was just so baffled when I asked her if she’d used protection or thought about her options and she was like ‘well I had sex once and didn’t get pregnant, so I just thought that I couldn’t’. Just Creators, how did this woman make it to be twenty-two and never be properly educated about sex?!?” 

Mara continued, “The whole thing is ridiculous to me. I get it, you want your kids to be all innocent and sweet forever and every parent thinks their kid is going to wait until their married or whatever. Then fine, don’t let your kid sit in on the sex ed.days, but at least let all the other kids know how to use a fucking condom! And not to mention, Bull would be so good at teaching sex ed. if he was allowed to do it in his health classes. But no, stupid Ferelden won’t let him. So we’ll have much higher statistics of STIs and pregnancy in teens because none of them know anything!”

They’d reached the house by this point, and he’d parked the car in the garage. Mara was still going as they walked up the steps and into the kitchen and she shrugged out of her coat. “These kids don’t know anything and then they go look for the answers to their questions about sex on the internet and they get misinformation or they believe that the things they see in porn are normal. And don’t even get me started on the mess that is the media’s influence on sex and the portrayal of relationships!” 

Cullen had followed her into the kitchen as she placed her coffee thermos in the sink and couldn’t help but smile when he replied, “I won’t.”

Mara turned to him sheepishly. “I’ve been ranting since we walked out of my classroom, haven’t I?”   
Cullen feigned surprise. “What? I hadn’t noticed.”

Mara rolled her eyes and closed the distance between them. “You totally let me.”

He smiled. “I was curious how long you’d keep going. Also, you’re quite sexy when you’re passionate about something.”

She scowled in response. 

“I was thinking though,” he said, “that we might be able to channel all that energy into something more productive.” He rested his hands on her waist, bringing her flush with him. 

“Oh Rutherford, you must be pretty smitten if my ranting gets you all hot and bothered,” she said around a smile.

He bent and placed a kiss just below her ear. “I absolutely am.”


	41. The New Standard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For #sexlaughterhonesty week’s fictionalized anecdote day I wrote this one up. It’s a little ridiculous, but my husband and I still laugh when we remind each other about this. 
> 
> Cullen x Mara, Class Act AU, 500 words, Mara’s POV. NSFW.

Mara couldn’t remember the last time she had felt quite this content. Her head was pillowed on Cullen’s chest, their bodies slowly cooling as the ceiling fan circulated air around them. The room would have been cooler if they could keep the door open, but with Argos they couldn’t. He’d at least given up on trying to get in, his nose pressed under the door and huffing having ceased. He’d probably gone for a nap, which was exactly where Mara reasoned she was headed if she was allowed to lay there much longer. 

Cullen’s fingers were idly skimming her arm, and he pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Don’t fall asleep.”

Mara kept her eyes shut. “Why not?”

“Because you won’t be able to sleep tonight,” he replied. Mara didn’t want to admit he had a point. It was late afternoon, and she’d be cursing herself tomorrow, no matter how tempting it was. 

She shifted so she was resting her chin on his chest. “You’ll need to keep me awake then.”

Cullen smiled. “You have very high opinion of me if you think I’m already up for round two. Also, don’t you have something you were in the middle of when I so rudely interrupted?”

She laughed. “Oh yes, and I’m clearly so annoyed.” She’d been packing for a conference she had the next week. It was only for three days, and Varric was going too. Cullen didn’t seem particularly excited for her to be gone though. They hadn’t spent more than a night apart since she’d moved in. 

He tucked her hair behind her ear. “Clearly. Maybe you just shouldn’t go, and you’ve already got a sub ready to go. I’ll get one too and we’ll just stay like this for three days.”

“Leliana would never suspect anything at all!” she teased. 

“If we were only so lucky,” Cullen sighed. He was shifting around a bit, and he then pulled out a hanger from under his leg. 

“Who left this on the bed?” he asked. 

“Who was so impatient that they didn’t let someone finishing packing before taking them to bed?” Mara countered, grabbing the hanger from his hand. 

Cullen was laughing, but once she had the hanger she realized the top part of the plastic had broken. “It’s broken!” 

Cullen sat up a bit to examine it. “Did you hear it break?”

Mara shook her head. “No, you’d think we would have.”

He smiled. “This is it, the new standard. Broken hanger sex.”

Mara couldn’t help but laugh. “So what we’re going to start asking things like, ‘was it broken hanger good’?”

Cullen tossed the hanger away. “Sounds far kinkier than it is.”

She swatted his head as he dipped it to kiss down her neck. “I don’t know, we could probably figure out something.”

Cullen’s mouth descended lower, tongue laving over her nipple. “We could, or…”

Her breath was already coming in shorter bursts. “Or?”

His response was a smirk as his head dived lower. 


	42. Almost Out of Luck

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The other day @baigonage requested #12 of the sex trope prompts: ““we couldn’t find a condom so we’re getting each other off in other ways” sex” with Cullen and Mara from the Class Act AU. I realized while I was writing this prompt that I have never actually written a blow job, and while I don’t write THAT much smut, I thought I’d written at least enough to have covered most of my bases. *laughs forever* 
> 
> Cullen x Mara, Class Act AU, Cullen’s POV, 1k words.

Cullen decided to dump the entire contents of his suitcase out because so far his frantic searching had been fruitless. He was positive he had packed them. Hadn’t he? 

“Don’t you have one in your bag?” he asked, looking at Mara. She was mostly naked on the bed, pulling her blonde hair back with a hair tie. 

“No, we used that one.  _ Remember _ ?” Mara laughed. He did. It had been after a rather ill-advised rock climbing adventure where they discovered that the crash pad could be used for more than just cushioning falls. 

They hadn’t been alone in days. They were visiting his family in South Reach, and they’d somehow found themselves completely alone at Mia’s for part of the afternoon. He loved staying at his sister’s house, but there was a distinct lack of alone time. As soon as they’d seen the car disappear down the long driveway they’d ducked into their room downstairs, pulling at clothes in an effort to feel each other’s skin. 

And he didn’t have condom. 

“I swear you packed them,” Mara said, moving to her own suitcase and beginning to look through it. 

“I know!” he replied, running a hand through his hair. His suitcase was a mess, and it was looking like they were out of luck. 

Mara glanced at him. “Would Mia…?”

She might, but it was in no way worth the teasing to ask or go looking. “Oh hey Mia, I’m calling because I want to have sex with my live-in girlfriend at your house. Do you happen to have any condoms?”

Mara doubled over in laughter. “Yeah, I think she’s still not totally on board with our living together.”

Cullen shook his head. “I think she just asked for one of her siblings to do things in the right order.”

Mara sank back down onto the bed. “She’s very traditional. It’s not a bad thing.” 

“I didn’t say it was, and despite her initial reaction she’s been supportive.” Cullen sat down next to Mara. 

Mara nodded. “She has. So we’re out of luck?”

They were, at least where some things were concerned. They’d been seeing only each other long enough that a condom wasn’t exactly a requirement. Mara was on birth control after all, but she was paranoid enough about getting pregnant that it wasn’t exactly worth going without. 

“Well, there are some things we can still do.” He smirked at her. He wasn’t sure if she was even still interested after their searching and the side conversation about his sister. 

Mara grinned. “There certainly are.” 

Cullen leaned in slowly, eyes locked with hers as he cupped her cheek. Their lips met languidly, as if they had all the time in the world, though they definitely didn’t. He could still taste the traces of the lip balm she wore to combat the dryness of the summer, just a hint of mint. His tongue slid against hers in familiar patterns, this was a dance they both knew well. 

Though it was the height of summer her fingers were still chill when she pressed gently against his bare shoulder, a clear signal for him to lie back. He did so gladly, relishing the feel of her as she moved over him. Mara kissed a line from his jaw to his ear, fingers slowly skimming down his chest. 

Their still clothed, though only just, hips moved against one another. Seeking the friction they were both so desperate for. After a particularly tantalizing stroke, Mara began to move lower, pressing her lips down his chest as he went. 

He realized where she was going and cupped her cheek, effectively halting her progress. She opened her eyes slowly, green eyes dark with want.

“Everything okay?” she asked. 

Maker’s breath it was far more than okay, but sort of felt that things were moving in a different order than he’d mapped out in his head. “I was just thinking that perhaps you should be first.”

Mara shook her head and smiled. “But then I might be too orgasm addled to remember why I can’t just have my way with you.”

“I’m not sure if I should applaud your thinking or be upset by it.” Cullen also wasn’t sure he cared to figure out which was she slipped his boxer briefs off of him and settled between his legs. 

“Probably both,” she took him in her hand and slowly took him into her mouth. And he was lost. It was an effort to keep his hips still, to let her set the rhythm and the movement. Her hand twisted at the base of him as she bobbed her head and he grappled for purchase on the sheets. 

He wasn’t exactly sure what noise he’d emitted, but he could feel Mara’s chuckle as she continued to move her mouth along his cock. She hollowed her cheeks, and he nearly flew off of the bed. 

“Maker,” he managed. Her hand continued to pump him as she released him. 

“You doing okay up there?” she asked. 

He attempted to glower at her, and noticed she was stretching her jaw. Her thumb slid over the tip of him and he sucked in a breath. “Are you?”

“I’m a little out of practice,” she admitted before taking him in her mouth again. And it took an embarrassingly short period of time before he could feel the familiar tightening in his stomach. 

“Mara - “ his words came out raspy as he tried to warn her. His hips were rocking in time with her movements, and she seemed to double her efforts. 

All it took was one twist of her hand and he careened over the glimmering edge, all the while trying to keep himself still. He managed to open his eyes in time to see Mara move off of him, giving him a quick wink before slipping out to the bathroom. 

He sucked in several steadying breaths because when she came back, it was her turn. 


	43. Grocery Shopping and Evasive Maneuvers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I ran into my ex's mom at the grocery store...and there were a few requests that I turn it into a prompt. So here we are.

Mara carefully crossed off the items of her list as Cullen followed behind her pushing a small cart. They were both dressed casually, having changed to comfier clothes when they got home, only to have to drag themselves out that evening. The start of school exhaustion was hitting hard. They’d gotten home and spent the afternoon on the couch binging the show they’d decided to start the last week of summer. Mara kept reminding herself that being this exhausted didn’t last forever, but this year it seemed especially killer. 

Mara placed the pasta sauce in the cart. “Okay, just a few more things, and we’re done.”

Cullen ran a hand through his hair. “Good.”

They started toward the end of the aisle, and then Mara realized Cullen had stopped behind her. She heard him swear under his breath. 

“What is it?”

Cullen slowly backed up a bit. “Uh…”

Mara knew the look, and glanced toward the large, and aromatic coffee display. There was a middle-aged woman there wearing a blue shirt with a hot pink, oversized purse perched in her cart. “Parent of a student?”

Cullen nodded. “Sort of.”

Mara looked at him in disbelief. “Sort of?”

Cullen sighed. “Dated her daughter. She seems to be under the impression that we’re still friends or something.”

Mara held up a hand. “Wait...you said she was the parent of a student.”

“Um...Lorraine was the older sister of a student,” Cullen admitted. 

“Rutherford, you didn’t!” Mara exclaimed, probably too loudly. 

Cullen looked around in concern and backed the cart further down the aisle. “Like you haven’t had students try to set you up.”

She laughed. “Yeah, but I had the good sense to  _ say no.  _ So what did the poor kid do when they found out you and their sister broke up after dating a while?”

“I’d hardly call three months a while, and they were graduated by that point so I have no idea,” Cullen rolled his eyes. 

Mara frowned. Evasive maneuvers. “She like mabari?” 

Cullen shook his head. “Can’t stand them.”

“I’m telling Argos,” she replied, but before he could retort. “Okay, take the cart to the mabari food aisle and leave it. Who needs food anyway? We’ll grab burgers and come back tomorrow.”

Cullen shook his head. “I feel like you if we do that you need to know we’re out of coffee.”

Mara glowered at him. “Damnit, Rutherford.” 

Cullen glowered back. “Well maybe if you didn’t insist on this grocery store to pick out your coffee.”

Mara put her hands on her hips. “Ferelden is good at a few things, but coffee isn’t one of them. This store has the best damn selection in all of Denerim.”

“Fine,” Cullen knew she was right, and he knew she knew it. “What do we do then?”

Mara handed Cullen the list. “I’ll go get coffee and you pick up the last few things and I’ll meet you over by the produce and we’ll check out and hopefully avoid that woman.”

“Thank you,” Cullen replied. 

Mara started walking away. “You know what I miss? Going to grocery stores and not knowing a single soul.”

She could hear Cullen chuckling as he walked away, and she made her way to the coffee where the woman still was. She gave her a friendly smile, and once she had a good collection of coffee to last at least two weeks she set off to meet up with Cullen. 

He was standing by the potatoes when she met up with him and put the coffee in the cart. “Okay, disaster averted. Let’s go.”

They were almost free, almost to the self-checkout when behind them Mara heard a voice call. “Cullen Rutherford! Is that you?”

Shit. 

They both turned slowly, and Mara hoped it wasn’t the same woman, but it was. Because of course it was. Mara chanced a quick glance to Cullen, and realized that the poor man was already turning pink. 

“Oh good to see you, Michelle,” Cullen said. The voice he used wasn’t quite his, it was one Mara recognized from whenever he communicated with awful parents. 

“New school year just starting, that’s exciting! And who is this?” Michelle gestured to Mara. 

Cullen rubbed his neck. “This is my girlfriend, Mara.”

Michelle offered a genuine smile. “So nice to meet you.” She turned back to Cullen. “Did you hear that Lorraine just had her baby?”

Cullen shook his head. “I hadn’t, congratulations.”

Michelle was beaming. “She’s going to be so glad to hear you’re doing well. You know I don’t see her as much as I’d like, but it’s always good to run into you. How are your classes going?”

Cullen was still a hilarious shade of pink. “Um….good so far.”

Mara decided to try to save the poor man. “Actually, we have to get to the school here soon. There’s a beginning of school band concert tonight.” It was the truth, though they had no plans to attend it. 

Michelle nodded. “Of course. Cullen, it is always so good to see you.”

“And you too,” Cullen replied before turning picking a self-checkout stand. They bagged and paid in mostly silence since the woman was just a self-checkout machine over, and they didn’t talk about it until they were both safely in the car. 

As soon as they were both inside laughter escaped from Mara. “Oh man, she likes you.”

Cullen sighed as he started the car. “Which is hilarious because she wasn’t quite as much of a fan when I dated Lorraine.” 

Mara wiped at her eyes. “I thought things didn’t end as amicably as she seems to think they did.”

Cullen shook his head. “It didn’t end badly, we just sort of stopped making time for each other. It was summer and I was doing a masters program.”

“And?” Mara knew that couldn’t be it. 

“She had no personality,” he finally said. 

Mara laughed again. “There it is. So you stopped calling her.”

“Communication is a two-way street, she stopped calling too,” he said. 

“Well, you are a history teacher, two boring people can’t work.” Mara grinned. 

“And here I thought the history teacher and the English teacher were doing a damn fine job of making boring work,” Cullen replied. 

Mara couldn’t help but smile at that. “I’m still telling Argos that you dated a woman whose mother hates mabari.”


	44. Stay in Bed Kisses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For @thesecondsealwrites's Kissing Day Celebration a prompt from @lechatrouge SLOTH! If you still have a prompt space open... "stay in bed kisses, mischievous and deep, punctuating flirtatiously whispered bargaining words" for Cullen and Mara? Please and thank you?

Those ten minutes between alarms that Mara had always told herself she so desperately needed had slowly shifted from stolen moments of sleep to stolen moments with Cullen. He hadn’t been sleeping well lately. They’d fall into bed sometime before ten each night, and he’d wake between three and four, sneaking downstairs to read or work or try to sleep some more before creeping back upstairs and snuggling her before they had to get up. 

She’d worried about his sleeping, but Cullen had assured her it was normal, simply a bad bout that would resolve itself eventually. Beyond the darker shadows under his eyes and his exhaustion when they dropped into bed, he hadn’t seemed any worse for wear. 

She was curled up against him, legs tangled together under the blankets. She’d slept like the dead, not noticing Cullen had left the bed until he’d come back and curled around her in the darkness. She’d been at the school late the night before helping Dagna get roses ready for Kissing Day again. It had gone much faster than the year before, their Key Club presidency being far more organized, but it had still been a long evening. She wanted nothing more than to fall back asleep cuddled with Cullen. 

Then her second alarm sounded. She groaned as she extricated herself from Cullen’s arms, and trudged over to the alarm, hitting the button to shut it off with a bit more force than was strictly necessary. Then she slipped back under the covers. 

Cullen hummed his approval as he gathered her back in his arms. “Not time to get up yet?”

“Nope,” Mara replied, snuggling closer. 

“Good.” 

His hand cupped her cheek, tilting her back enough that his searching lips could find hers. He kissed her languidly, as if they had all morning and didn’t have a full school day ahead of them. She let him, melting into his arms, fingers buried in the soft cotton of his sleep shirt. 

“Let’s play hooky,” he whispered as he pressed kisses to her cheeks. 

She laughed breathlessly. “Rutherford, I’m surprised at you. You want to stay in bed all day on Kissing Day of all days.”

He kissed along her jaw. “I want to stay in bed all day, every day with you. Today just so happens to be Kissing Day.”

She shook her head. “We can’t.” They could call subs and put together sub plans, but both of them out sick on the same day, on a holiday? They’d never hear the end of it from Leliana or Dorian. 

“Sure we can,” Cullen replied. His hand had slipped beneath her shirt, running up and down the expanse of her back, pulling her closer with each pass. 

Their lips met again, more urgent, more full of need. Mara wanted a lot of things they did not have time for. She barely made it out the door on time as it was, and she didn’t dare look at the clock to see just how quickly she’d be rushing through her morning now. His leg pressed up and into her, and she began calculating just how quickly she could shower and be dressed and manage at least one orgasm. 

Mara began pulling at his clothes. “We don’t have time for slow.”

Cullen pulled back from her in surprise. “Really?” 

She knew he wasn’t questioning their need to make it quick, but the fact she’d given in. He really should know by now that she had terrible judgement before seven a.m. 

“It’s already six-fifteen,” he said, golden eyes providing a warning. 

Already? She thought it was still a bit closer to six. She pulled him back down for a kiss. “It’s Kissing Day after all.”

Cullen laughed against her lips. “Don’t think that just because my day is starting like this I’ll be a fan of the holiday.”

“Scrooge,” she grinned, this Kissing Day might just be the best one yet. 


	45. And Then There Were Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A prompt from Mandojedi23: Can you do Cullen and Mara from A Class Act, either when they find out they are going to have Hadley or Hadley's birth?
> 
> This is my final contribution for @thesecondsealwrites's Kissing Day celebration!

Mara paced the length of the bathroom, and purposefully avoided staring at the little stick sitting on the counter. She wasn’t sure how to feel. Nervous, excited, terrified? She seemed to be flitting from emotion to emotion without any sort of direction. 

It was just strange she supposed, getting excited over something she’d spent years trying to prevent. She’d been paranoid about getting pregnant for years and years, and there she was, sort of hoping for it. She hadn’t been feeling well lately, and she’d sort of written it all off as beginning of school germs and exhaustion. But then, the night before she’d been lying awake as Cullen quietly snored beside her and she started counting backwards in her head. She wasn’t sure when her last period had been. So first thing that morning she’d dug through her stash of menstrual products to find the pregnancy tests she always had on hand. For once, the paranoia had paid off. 

At the end of the last school year they’d talked about it, decided to try. They’d jokingly whispered about how perfect it would be if she got pregnant in the fall, had the baby at the end of the school year and they had all summer with the baby. Things didn’t happen that quickly, or often that easily. Mara knew that. 

She’d never been terribly regular anyway, and so she was almost sure she wasn’t pregnant. Or at least she kept telling herself that. It’d probably been three minutes. And so she chanced a glance at the test. 

The tiny display had stopped flashing and a single word had appeared. Pregnant.

“Oh shit.” The room spun around her, and she had to sit down. She sucked in breath after breath, trying to get it together. Her heart was racing, and once that initial bit of shock wore off she realized she was thrilled. Excited. Terrified, but excited. 

She was pregnant. 

Oh creators, she was going to be pregnant in front of students. What if she went into labor when she was teaching? What if morning sickness came on really badly? Mornings already sucked, vomit on the regular would not help. 

Shit. She needed to tell Cullen. She raced out of the bathroom. 

“Cullen?” she called when she didn’t see him in the bedroom. 

She heard his voice come from downstairs. “Yeah?”

She very nearly toppled over on her way down the stairs, and then found him sitting at the table, ready for the day. His blue button down was already rolled up to the elbows, and he had his black lesson planning notebook in front of him. His glasses rested on the table, but he put them on as she approached, face slowly shifting to concern. 

“Everything okay?” he asked. 

Suddenly words didn’t come. So she simply nodded. She took a deep breath. “I’m pregnant.”

Cullen’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, and then he broke into a radiant smile. “Really?”

Her heart was still racing. “Yeah.”

He stood from the table, burying his hand in her hair as he kissed her fervently. He held her gently, carefully, as if she was somehow the most precious thing he’d ever touched. 

“You’re just determined to make me like this damn holiday aren’t you?” he asked as he pulled away. He was still smiling, and looking at her with an odd sort of wonder. 

It took her a moment to realize what he was talking about, but then she laughed. “Happy Kissing Day, Cullen.”


	46. Climbing Routes and Courage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written for Day 6 of Cullavellan Week. Have Cullen and Mara supporting each other, and climbing.

The windows were down and the canyon breeze whipped through the car while the music played. Mara was behind the wheel, coaxing the car along the narrow and winding road. It was still early, and Cullen could smell the dew that was still evaporating from the trees that passed by in a blur. The backseat and trunk of Mara’s car was packed full of gear and water, and Cullen was a little surprised at just how much equipment was required for climbing outdoors. 

It was his first time climbing outside, and while he’d been climbing with Mara indoors quite often in the last few months, he was still not sure exactly what to expect. Mara had a gleam in her eye, a sense of adventure in her step. She’d hardly touched her coffee, and that’s when Cullen realized she was actually thrilled to be up as early as they were. 

The car slowed and Mara flipped around before parking on the wide dirt shoulder. A small dust cloud rose up in response, and Mara grinned as she pulled the keys from the ignition. 

“You ready?” she asked. 

Cullen gave her a nod. “Sure.”

Then Mara was out of the car, trunk open and pulling gear out. Most of it he recognized, but there were a few things he didn’t quite understand what they might be for. Mara was pulling on a huge black foam pad like a backpack. It was comically too large for her, the pad itself stretching nearly a foot over her head. 

“What is that?” Cullen asked. 

Mara adjusted the straps over her shoulders. “Crash pad. In case we want to do some bouldering or just have someplace soft to sit. I’ll get the rope bag if you can get the other two backpacks, it’s not far.”

“Somehow the presence of a crash pad is not making me feel reassured,” he replied as he grabbed the other two backpacks and shut the trunk. 

Mara was already approaching a narrow path between the trees. “Oh come on Rutherford, don’t tell me you’re nervous.”

He ran a hand through his hair. “Maybe a little.”

Mara’s green eyes were kind. “I promise the worst part is the approach, just follow me.”

The approach was a rock wash, steep and difficult to get an even footing on. The rocks clinked and clanked clear and bright as Chantry bells beneath their careful steps. Mara moved quickly up the wash despite the giant foam square she carried on her back. Cullen did better than he expected, finding himself at the top of the wash just in time to begin feeling the strain in his legs. 

There were sheer cliffs that rose up ahead of them, deep grays contrasting with lighter parts of the stone. Up higher, beyond the shade of the trees the lighter parts of the rock sparkled in the rising sun. The rock itself was rough, looking like seaweed or something had been pressed against the rock millions of years ago.

“What is this place?” he asked. 

Mara glanced up at the cliffs with a smile. “Fucoidal Quartzite. Back when all of this was covered by the Waking Sea, sea worms and things burrowed here and the sand filled them and made these.”

“Wow.” Cullen couldn’t help, but be a bit in awe as he approached Mara. She’d set the crash pad down and was in the middle of pulling the rope out, making sure it stayed as much out of the dirt as possible. 

“I got you something,” Mara said with a smile. “Open up that backpack.”

He opened up the bag in question, pulling out a bright red helmet. There was other gear further in, what looked to be carabiners and Mara’s harness. 

“A helmet?” he held it up, realizing that she had a white one resting on the crash pad. 

“Safety first, Rutherford. You like it?” she asked. 

He placed it on his head, and gave her a smile. “I feel ridiculous.”

She shrugged. “You won’t when a rock falls on your head and your helmet keeps you from dying.”

“Fair enough.” Cullen adjusted the strap underneath his chin before digging out his own harness. 

“Once I swung and managed to get a nasty gash across my shoulder blades, so anything can happen. We’re just going to be careful.” Mara pulled her own harness on, and her helmet followed not long after. 

“You’ll hear no argument from me,” Cullen smiled. 

Mara shook her head. “I’m sorry; I’m used to climbing with crazy people that don’t care about using safety gear and feel okay freeclimbing things.”

“Freeclimbing?”

“No ropes, no gear, just climb this route right now,” Mara pointed up at the tops of the cliffs. 

Cullen’s stomach twisted just thinking about it. “No, thank you.”

“If you feel like it’s in your ability, fine. I just don’t want to be there,” Mara said. She was clipping all manner of gear to her harness, quickdraws and slings. He’d learned their names the last few times at the gym. She’d had him belay her while she lead climbed, and making sure he felt comfortable in the gym before taking it outside. Cullen didn’t envy her job, he’d be happy to stay on the ground belaying while she set up the top rope. 

“I can see that. What’s the difficulty on this one?” Cullen asked. 

Mara leaned against the cliff while she put her climbing shoes on. “Um, about 5.7 or so. Are you ready for the route name?”

“What is it?”

“Butt Ball.” Mara grinned. 

Cullen chuckled, and probably shouldn’t have been surprised. There was another route Mara had shown him on his tablet the other night named for places in Lord of the Rings. “So you could say that we’re climbing the butt?”

Mara laughed and pointed to the rock wall above them. “Well, there is a crack.”

“I’m never going to hear the end of this am I?” he asked. 

Mara wound her hands around his waist, pushing up to her tiptoes to kiss him. “Never. Also, thanks for coming.”

He quickly kissed her nose. “Thanks for bringing me.” 

Mara took a step back handing him part of the rope while she tied in on the end of it. “You have the grigri?” 

He did, and was practiced enough to get it set up without questions. He’d seen Mara lead climb indoors, but wasn’t sure how it worked outside. “How are you going to tie in along the wall?”

Mara approached the wall and pointed to a small metal bolt. “Bolts here, just like in the gym. One of the reasons I picked this route. They’re a little strung out though, so I might put in some cams or a nut, we’ll just see what makes sense when I’m up there.” 

Cullen wasn’t exactly sure what she was talking about, but was sure it had to do with the gear hanging from her harness. It all clinked together as she moved closer to the wall, examining the route with expert eyes. 

She turned to him. “On belay?”

“Belay on.”

“Climbing?”

“Climb on.” 

Those words were for safety, but they’d become a familiar echo. And Mara’s over the shoulder smile right before she moved to the wall might be his favorite yet. She made climbing look so damn easy, placing her quick draws on the bolts before clipping her rope in. She always looked so balanced, so calm. He envied that; too often he panicked at the heights. He was hoping that today wouldn’t be one of those days. 

It didn’t take long for Mara to reach the top, anchoring herself in before setting the rope and then retying herself in. 

“Alright, Rutherford. You can let me down now,” she called, legs pushing out from the wall. He fed the rope in carefully, lowering her smoothly and safely down to the ground. 

“You were quick,” Cullen commented as he disconnected the grigri from the rope. 

Mara’s answering smile was wide and bright. “It was fun. Are you ready to go? You’ll have to clean the route.”

It was another thing they’d practiced at the gym, and Cullen didn’t quite want to admit how useful it made him feel. Mara just made this whole thing look so much easier than it was, and Cullen wanted to be better at climbing than he was. Or at least less scared of the heights. 

“Yeah, that’ll be fine.” 

Their roles were reversed too quickly. Mara was set to belay, gloves on and grinning because her blue shirt read “Have you hugged your belayer today?”. He kept glancing up at the sheer rock face, and reminding himself he was attached to a rope that wasn’t going anywhere. 

“Anything I should know first?” he asked, an unsubtle attempt to stall. 

Mara moved a little closer, he could feel the rope he was tied into go slack as she closed the distance. “I think climbing outside is more fun. No rules. In the gym it’s all got to pick the right colored holds, whatever. I’ve got you.”

He took a deep breath. “Thanks.”

And then he buried his hands in his chalk bag before moving up the route. The first few moves were easy, big hand holds and good ledges to stand on. He moved slowly, moving the quickdraws from the wall to a loop of his harness. He was just starting to relax when the wall above him seemed to smooth out. There was nothing to hold onto. 

Cullen wasn’t one to give up easily, and he felt along the wall, finding nothing more than fingertip-sized grips. As he worked, he felt his leg begin to shake. What had Mara called it? Sewing machine leg? 

And then he made the mistake of looking down.

***

Mara kept a tight hold on the rope, making sure that it was a constant reminder as Cullen climbed that it was there, that she would catch him. She knew that heights scared him a bit, and that it didn’t stop him from climbing, from enjoying the sport she loved so much. She was always in awe at how hard he pushed past the fear, but he seemed to be struggling that morning. 

She could see his legs shaking, recognized those telltale signs of fear sinking in. She couldn’t see from his height, but she knew his breathing was speeding up, and that his heart was probably racing. 

“Cullen,” she said, words gentle so as not to startle. 

He didn’t look at her, eyes staring straight at the stone in front of him. “Yeah?”

“Why don’t you lean back, just hang and let the rope hold you for a minute?” Mara suggested. 

“I don’t want to let go of the wall,” he admitted, voice shaking. 

Mara understood the feeling. “You’ll exhaust yourself though.”

Cullen’s legs continued to wobble. “Maybe you should just let me down.”

“Is that what you want?” she asked. She knew he could do this. He was at the crux of the climb, and it was just two moves to get past this part, well maybe one and half with his height. She would never push him though, and if he wanted down, she’d lower him. 

His rested his head against the rock, eyes falling shut. “No.”

“Okay, what’s stopping you?” 

Cullen sighed. “There’s nowhere to go, nothing to hold onto.”

“Nothing?”

“Not nothing, they’re so small,” he explained. 

Mara smiled. “Use them for balance and use your feet to climb. You rely on your hands too much.”

“My hands make me feel safe,” he replied. 

“You know what else should make you feel safe?” Mara tugged on the rope. “This.”

He shook his head, but moved back to the wall. There was a bit of a tremor in his hands when he reached for the holds Mara knew were crimpy, but he trusted his feet, pushed forward and found a more solid hold just above him. In three moves he was at the top, still grasping the wall as he gave her a nod. 

“Okay, I’m good.”

She fed the rope slowly, and the further he dropped the more relaxed he was, pushing off the wall and no longer feeling the need to be in control. He was smiling by the time his feet touched the ground. 

“You did so great!” she said as she disconnected herself from the rope. Cullen was having more trouble, chalked up hands shaking as he tried to loosen the figure-eight knot. 

She stepped closer, taking over for him as he smiled. “I made it to the top.”

She couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, you did. I think we’ve both earned a bit of break, don’t you?”

The crash pad was half open, leaning against a stray boulder at the base of the cliff like their own personal couch. Mara did Cullen the favor of opening his water bottle for him before sinking down onto the soft pad. Cullen followed her, sliding an arm around her shoulders as he sat. 

He took a long drink from his water bottle before speaking. “So this is why you brought the crash pad.”

She elbowed him in his side before pulling her helmet off. “Are you complaining?”

Cullen’s hair was a mess of curls under his own helmet, and he moved closer. “Most definitely not.” 

His mouth was warm and insistent against hers, lips moving slowly but joyfully. Everytime he overcame his fear while climbing there was a certain joy about him that permeated everything, and the kiss was no different. He cradled her skull carefully as he kissed her, and she buried her hands in his shirt, aware that it would likely leave him covered in leftover chalk. 

“Thank you,” Cullen said as he pulled back. 

“For what?” Mara asked. 

He took her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “For not letting me give up.”

She smiled, wondering if he meant more than just their climbing that day. “Never, Rutherford.”


	47. First Days as New Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I've had this written for a while now. I wrote it after reflecting on my first day of school this year and those nerves that never seem to go away no matter how many first days I have so have Cullen's very first, first day.

Cullen Rutherford was nervous. More nervous than he could ever remember being. 

He was a little over a month clean from lyrium, living in a construction zone of a house, and he had no idea what in the void he was doing. He felt shaky all over, and for once, it had nothing to do with withdrawal. 

He’d arrived at Skyhold High way earlier than he needed to, but he hadn’t been able to sleep much anyway. The little sleep he had gotten had been filled with dreams that made him somehow more nervous. In them, his classes had started and he was completely unprepared. Which was silly because he had made copies for at least the first week and a half. He had the several hours he’d lost figuring out the copy machine and running copies as proof of that. 

His clothes felt somehow foreign against his skin, the clean press of a button down shirt so different from the uniform he’d worn for years in Kirkwall. He kept catching glimpses of himself in the windows and mirrors in the school, and he hardly recognized the man he saw staring back at him. He adjusted his glasses. Those were new too, a side effect of lyrium withdrawal he hadn’t expected. 

Cullen was convinced that his students were going to walk in the door of his classroom and immediately be able to sense that he had no idea what he was doing. He felt like some sort of fraud. Who in their right mind had decided he was fit to be in charge of a classroom full of teenagers? 

What if they hated him? What if he hated this job? He’d switched careers, bought a house, and completely changed his life in a matter of weeks. There was something utterly terrifying about the complete recklessness of that. Everything Cullen had ever done had been measured, weighed, analyzed and then often overanalyzed. He didn’t make impulsive decisions. And yet, there he was at Skyhold in his very own classroom. 

It still looked bare. He’d done his best to make the place look a bit more cheerful, but it was hard to make brown brick walls and yellow and brown cabinets look welcoming. He’d inherited a good number of posters and maps from the classroom’s previous inhabitant, along with years worth of useless stuff. He’d even found curriculum for a Tevinter language unit. If Varric was to believed, that class hadn’t existed at Skyhold in over twenty years. He’d spent days cleaning out the cupboards and organizing the place. 

His desks stood in straight lines, solid and sure. He’d arranged them meticulously the first day in his room, trying to imagine what his room might feel like full of students and learning and laughter. 

“Happy first day!” Leliana’s voice came from the doorway, and Cullen did his best to hide the fact he’d nearly jumped out of his skin. He’d done a poor job judging by the wince on Leliana’s face. 

“Uh, thank you.” He rubbed his neck nervously. 

Leliana offered him a small smile. “You have everything you need?” 

Cullen nodded. “I think so. Just waiting on the kids to arrive, I guess.”

Leliana’s eyes were bright. “I just love the first day of school, and all the enthusiasm for a new year that comes with it. We’re really excited to have you here. Good luck today.”

“Thanks.”

And then she left and he was alone again. His only company were the thoughts and worries and what ifs that kept spiralling through his brain. He desperately wanted the day to be good, and to be a good teacher. 

_ Relax, Rutherford, _ he repeated for what felt like the millionth time that morning. Then he noticed a student caught in the doorway, clearly unsure if she should come inside. She looked as nervous as he felt, brand new binder clutched tightly to her chest and backpack over one shoulder. 

“Good morning.” He smiled; the words coming far more easily than he thought they would. 

The student seemed to relax immediately. “Hi, are you Mr. Rutherford?”

Mr. Rutherford. The name still felt odd, almost like it was oversized, too big for him. He nodded anyway. “I am. What’s your name?”

The student came a few steps into the classroom. “I’m Cambrie, do we have a seating chart?”

Should he have a seating chart on the first day? He worried for a moment that he’d already screwed it all up. “No, take a seat anywhere you would like.”

Cambrie gave him a tentative smile. “Okay.” 

The bell rang not long after that, and soon his classroom was filled to bursting with students. He fumbled a bit throughout the day. He never imagined that being in front of a room of teenagers would somehow be more nerve wracking than leading an entire unit back in Kirkwall. So much more had been at stake, but the nerves at the head of his classroom were far worse. 

He marveled at how quickly the time passed though. Before he knew it, it was lunchtime which he spent with Varric and Cassandra, and then a prep hour followed. By the time fifth hour rolled around, he was feeling more confident, but exhausted from repeating the same things four times throughout the day. He sent a silent prayer to the maker when the final bell rang, glad that tomorrow his classes lessons differed. The students filtered out the door, and he watched them go with the hope that they’d enjoyed their time in his class. Several murmured thanks on their way out of the door and he found himself wishing them a good day as they left. 

“See you tomorrow, Mr. R!” one student, Jared or Jake perhaps, called. It was going to take him too long to learn names, but Cullen couldn’t help but smile. Mr. R. Yeah, that was something he could get used to. 


	48. Silent Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A holiday prompt from @mysdrym "Silent Night". This occurs post Class Act, but pre-engagement/wedding.

Snow was steadily falling outside, and Mara was glad to be home and in her warm pajamas and fuzzy socks. She had a mug of hot cocoa beside her and she was curled up on the couch with her latest read. The Satinalia tree stood in the front window of the living room, glowing warm and welcoming. 

They still had one more day left until Satinalia break and all of the festivities began, but Mara liked this time of year best. The quiet evenings laced with anticipation for the holiday to come. The closer it got to Satinalia the more the space under their tree filled up, and while presents certainly didn’t equal love, the thoughtfulness of friends and family and students was perfectly tangible in the growing pile. 

The student gifts were the most humbling of all, and mostly because they could not be reciprocated. Mara must have been looking a little haggard because a student had walked in last Monday morning, set a twelve pack of her favorite caffeinated drink on her desk, and informed her it was to help her make it to Christmas break. She didn’t want to admit how little of the pack was left. 

Cullen emerged from the office, rubbing his eyes and running a hand down his face before sinking down next to her. “I think that’s the last of them.”

Mara melted into him, draping her feet over his waist. “All the finals done?”

Cullen nodded. “All done.”

Mara kissed his cheek. “And this is why you don’t assign a final right before Satinalia break.”

Cullen yawned. “And what was I supposed to do instead? Have them write First Day toasts?” 

She scowled up at him. “That was a brilliant idea for a writing assignment, and you know it. Plus we got to drink pop in plastic champagne glasses.”

Cullen pulled her closer. “And tomorrow?” 

“A movie, like any smart teacher would on the last day. Classes are like twenty-five minutes, what else do they expect us to do?” Mara asked. The school day was shortened, and then there was the annual assembly. As student council co-advisor, she’d made sure she wasn’t getting pies thrown at her this year, but she was apparently going to be racing Cassandra in one of those plastic hamster balls. Bull had volunteered, but they weren’t sure they’d be able to ensure one of his horns didn’t pop the thing. 

Cullen sighed. “I’ll probably finalize grades with the kids while a movie plays.”

“Good. You can’t be a grinch while just across the hall my kids have a great time,” Mara said. 

“Yes, I think my poor kids had about enough of that today,” Cullen replied with a smirk. 

Mara shrugged, settling back down against him. 

They sat there for a while, watching the snow fall silently outside the window. Mara still sometimes marveled at how easy it was to be with Cullen. It had been easy to move in with him, and it often caught her off guard how well their lives fit together. 

“It’s sure pretty, but it’s going to make the drive tomorrow horrendous,” Mara whispered. 

Cullen gave her side a squeeze right where he knew she was ticklish. “Yeah, because you always do so much driving in the snow?”

She laughed. “Why do you think I moved in with you, Rutherford?”

“You only want me for my snow driving skills!” Cullen said, eyes bright but voice dripping with mock indignation. 

She kissed him then, whispering against his lips. “And don’t you forget it.”


	49. Chapter 49

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So six years ago my grandmother was in the hospital with a life threatening infection. The whole thing was especially difficult because I was planning my wedding, and there were days where we just didn't know if we'd be planning a wedding and a funeral. Grandma ended up pulling through, and is still kicking it today at 89, but I still remember the Christmas we spend in the hospital as a family. It was a different sort of Christmas, but very important. A neighbor had baked an incredible cheesecake, and my grandfather grabbed me and we walked around the specialty hospital grabbing anyone and everyone who could leave their posts to come eat some cheesecake with us. It was a weird little collection of people: cafeteria workers, janitors, nurses, and staff. But honestly, it's one of the best memories, especially as we considered that this might just be the last Christmas we were all together. Anyway, as I was considering Satinalia prompts I thought of this and wanted to write it all out. I know it's a bit angsty, but I hope you enjoy it. 1100 words, Cullen is 17 here. Class Act AU.

It was the inevitability of it all that had crushed Cullen the most. That no matter what he did, or the doctors did, his mother was still dying. There had been long stretches of time when Cullen had hope. That he’d believed that somehow she’d pull out of it, but as time wore on the the disease ravaging her body made her more and more weak. He came to the reluctant realization that he was going to lose his mother, and it was going to be sooner rather than later. 

As a family, they had begun to collect lasts, and they piled up in his heart, heavy and weighing down things that should have been celebrations. The last Summerday, the last Kissing Day, and now the last Satinalia. It didn’t escape him that all of these lasts would soon turn to firsts as they tried to navigate the new landscape that his mother’s illness had left them with. 

Cullen’s mother had entered the hospital unexpectedly a few days ago. Mia had taken her after Cullen, Branson, and Rosie were already gone to school. She’d of course waited until they were all gone before asking Mia to take her to the hospital. Mia hadn’t called him until the afternoon, at the request of their mother, but it hadn’t stopped him from rushing from school straight to the hospital. Mia, his father, and Cullen had taken shifts, sleeping on the chair in the cramped hospital room, and trying to ignore the whirs and beeps of the machines. The room only had a tiny window, but his mother always craned to look through it as it snowed. 

When it became clear that their mother wasn’t going to be able to go home before Satinalia, Mia had found a small tree and set it up in the room. It stayed plugged in all night, casting strange shadows on the wall. 

His mother was currently sleeping, and Cullen was curled up under a scratchy hospital blanket on the reclining chair. Cullen couldn’t sleep. He’d spent his day awaiting the grades for his finals, and it seemed silly to be worried about what grade he got on his history exam or his English paper when everything else in his life was slowly falling apart. 

He shifted in the chair so he could see his mother. Her hospital gown hung off her thin frame. She’d uncovered her head to sleep, but she usually kept it covered in a hat or a scarf, something. She looked so much more sick when she was asleep. 

Cullen wished that there was something to be done, some way to make this all better. There wasn’t. He’d heard the word hospice whispered low to his father today by one of the doctors. He knew what that meant, but who knew? Maybe his mother would rally again. She’d done it before, defied odds and expectations. Cullen had to believe it was possible. 

That was the hope he sent up the Maker as the Fade finally claimed him. 

***

Satinalia usually went like this: if there was snow, there was skiing to be had. But Cullen’s family always left early enough on Satinalia Eve to be home for the big dinner. The dinner was always sheer perfection of his mother’s making. She always made his favorite green bean casserole, and then after dinner the family sat down to watch a movie. And it was usually A Satinalia Story, much to the chagrin of his mother. 

The family would find their way to bed, and then in the morning it was presents under the tree. They’d spend the day lazing about, and then his mother would work magic once more in the kitchen. It was always perfect. All the more precious for the tradition of it all. 

And Cullen didn’t realize how much he’d miss it until it wasn’t a reality anymore. Their family was crowded around a table in the empty hospital cafeteria. Cullen was sure that the cafeteria workers had tried, but the turkey was bone dry and none of it felt like it should have. 

His mother had been wheeled down by one of her nurses, and sat at the head of the table wearing a red hat in order to be festive. 

Cullen didn’t feel like being festive.

The presents under the tree had gone untouched this year, and they’d spent the day cramped up in the hospital room, talking and playing games, and watching whatever happened to be on tv. 

Cullen was pushing the soggy mashed potatoes on his plate around when their Aunt Lena arrived. Lena wasn’t really their aunt, but she may as well have been. She was his mother’s best friend from college, and having no children of her own she’d declared shared custody of him and his siblings years ago. 

Lena came bearing her famous cheesecake. “Happy Satinalia!”

She set the cake down and gave his mother a hug before greeting the rest of them. Mia stood up. “I’ll go see if I can get some clean plates for all of us.”

Lena shook her head. “Get lots, Mia. This is not very festive. Come on, Cullen. Let’s see what we can do about that.”

Cullen didn’t want to keep picking at his dinner anyway, so he stood and followed Lena out of the cafeteria. 

“This place is full of people who are working on Satinalia. Let’s go see if we can track them down, and make their holiday a bit better with cheesecake,” Lena said. 

“You could have made your cheesecake out of cardboard and it would still beat anything coming out of that cafeteria,” Cullen said, voice quiet. 

Lena wrapped an arm around his shoulders, her short blonde hair brushing his face. “Why do you think I came when I did? I got to skip the cafeteria food.”

They laughed together, and were fairly successful in rounding up nurses and staff that could leave their posts for a bit of cheesecake. 

By the time Cullen got his slice, their little corner of the cafeteria was crowded with people. He chanced a glance over at his mother, and she was smiling as she talked to Lena and a few of the nurses. 

And then it hit him. This was the point of Satinalia. Not the dinner, or the gifts, or the decorations. It was being together, and it was taking care of each other. Satinalia was about so much more than everything he was missing that year. 

His father held his mother’s hand in his, and beside him Mia looked more relaxed than she had in months. “It’s not perfect, but it’s something, isn’t it?” 

Cullen nodded. “It’s Satinalia.” 


	50. Satinalia Sweaters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A prompt for Gardensparrow over on tumblr. 600 words, Cullen's POV. Comes directly before Silent Night.

Cullen was working on grading finals in the office when he was sure he heard Mara rummaging around upstairs in their bedroom. He was still questioning his own judgement giving a final on the second to last day before the end of the term, but he wanted to use up every single day. A final was a good way to keep the kids engaged all the way up to the break. It was usually needed because somehow their teenagers turned into kindergartners three weeks before the actual holiday. 

If only Cullen had a dollar for everytime a student asked him if they were going to have a “fun day” in class that day, he’d be a very rich man. So he hadn’t felt bad about giving the final, even if he was pretty sure he was the one actually paying for it. 

Normally, he wouldn’t go upstairs to see what Mara was doing, but she sounded frustrated. He finished the test he was on and walked upstairs to find her basically buried in the closet. Argos was on the bed, his tail wagging when he saw Cullen. 

“Please tell me you are not searching our room for where I’ve hidden your presents,” Cullen commented, leaning against the doorframe. He highly doubted she was, but if she was, she’d be very disappointed. He used her height against her, and always had hidden her gifts on the very top shelf of the closet under the stairs. Mara wasn’t even tall enough to see if there was something on the shelf much less what was up there. It was a stroke of brilliance on his part, and he’d hidden a very special small box up there as well. He was waiting for the right moment, for some sort of inspiration to strike. It hadn’t yet, but then he didn’t think there was any real rush. 

Mara scowled at him. “Just how many Satinalia sweaters do you own?”

There were three very ugly and very awful sweaters laid out on the bed, and all three of them were his. “Um….” He rubbed his neck. 

“There are more?” Mara asked incredulously. 

“Maker, no. I did sort of forget I owned one, two years in a row?” Cullen explained sheepishly. 

Mara held up the blue one with awful looking applique snowmen. “You forgot you owned this? I’m traumatized just looking at it.”

Cullen laughed. “Isn’t that the point of ugly Satinalia sweaters?” 

Mara smiled before turning back to the closet. “I know I have a red sloth one somewhere, but I can’t find it.”

“A sloth sweater?” Cullen asked. 

“The sloths are holding onto the tree, it’s ugly and adorable, and I need it for tomorrow,” Mara explained. Her hair was getting longer, and it was braided back. Cullen brushed it off her neck and pressed a kiss there. 

“Do you remember seeing it when you moved in?” he asked. 

She leaned against him. “Maybe?”

“Then it’s got to be here somewhere,” Cullen said wrapping an arm around her waist.

Mara nodded. “Don’t you have finals to grade?”

He sighed. He still had at least two class hour worths to get through. “Yes.” 

Mara stepped away from him. “You should get those done.” 

“And you should keep looking,” Cullen replied. He didn’t want to go, but he needed to get the finals graded before tomorrow. Argos jumped off the bed, and followed him into the office, curling up on the soft chair in the corner. 

He hadn’t even gotten through another test before he heard Mara calling. “Found it!”

Cullen smiled. Last Satinalia had been wonderful, but he was pretty sure this one was going to be even better. 


	51. The Floor is Lava

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A prompt from girlierest "Stay There". This totally went a different direction than I'd planned, and this is something that definitely hasn't ever happened in the real life *whistles innocently*   
> Also! Hi! It's been a bit!

Skyhold High School’s schedule for the last two weeks of school made absolutely no sense. Which is just another way of saying that the School Executive Council had been the one to vote and decide on it. The first week was finals week, and that meant only two classes a day and that the students were done by noon. The teachers, however, were still required to be there until contractual time. 

The SEC had probably thought that the teachers needed the time to grade finals, and they probably did, but on that Friday afternoon the teachers were not grading finals. At least the ones down in the science wing weren’t because they were playing “The Floor is Lava”. 

“No one’s ever going to believe that there was absolutely zero alcohol involved in this,” Varric said from a particularly comfortable looking perch atop a table. 

Mara leaned against the brick wall from her tower of desks. “We’re teachers in May, our brains gave out a month ago, we don’t need the alcohol.”

She felt like she needed to sleep for a week straight to recover from this school year. She knew it was the end of the school year by the amount of post it note lists that were required to keep things from falling apart. 

“This whole thing is a lawsuit waiting to happen,” Dorian drawled as he jumped from a chair to a filing cabinet. 

“Pffffttt...everything is a lawsuit these days.” Sera rolled her eyes. “Leliana says I need to add in more things to my disclosure.”

“To be fair, you use a lot of sharp things in ceramics,” Cullen offered. He was sitting on a lone desk a ways down the hall, and Mara wasn’t sure how he’d managed to get to it since there was barely anything around him. 

They were finally replacing the carpets in the classrooms, and they’d all been asked to clear their rooms of everything, which meant the hallways were a mess of desks and bookshelves and filing cabinets. Naturally, Sera had decided to make a game of it. 

“Dorian cuts things open!” Sera protested. 

“We dissect them, and I have to send home a special disclosure too, I’ll have you know,” Dorian said. 

“It’s annoying!” Sera replied. “We need to keep moving, or Bull’ll eat all the popcorn in the faculty lounge!”

Cullen looked around where he was doubtfully. “And you said if you touch the ground, no popcorn?”

Sera grinned as she edged along a row of desks. “That’s right.”

Mara was pretty sure she could get the rolling chair near her over to Cullen. “Stay there.”

Dorian sighed. “This is ridiculous.”

Varric laughed. “You know what’s ridiculous? Me trying to keep up with the rest of you.”

Mara managed to kick the rolling chair to Cullen while she clung to a bookcase. “Got it?”

He jumped on, letting the momentum carry him up the hallway to the table Varric had been on. Mara leapt across a few more desks to meet up with him. Varric and Dorian were still lamenting the ridiculousness of the game while they followed Sera up the hall. 

Cullen shook his head. “I have so much grading to do.”

Mara laughed. “Me too.”

He groaned. “We’re going to hate ourselves on Monday when we have to get grades in by nine.”

She shrugged. “Probably.” She pulled him closer and smiled up at him. His arm wrapped around her waist before his lips met hers, and for a moment they forgot they were not alone in the hallway. 

Until the sound of someone blowing a very loud raspberry reached them. 

“Oi! Quit making out and hurry up!” Sera yelled. 

Mara broke away and began moving forward, but not before glancing back at him. “You heard her, Rutherford.”

Cullen offered her an exasperated smile. “Right behind you.”


	52. Cullen Rutherford, Author

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written for 2018's Sex Laughter Honesty's anecdote day. During last year's event my husband decided to write some smut of his own, and it made me VERY flustered. So have a very flustered Mara.

Mara had always looked forward to summer, but as a teacher, it meant something more than just warm weather. It was the longest uninterrupted break in the school year, and it was definitely a necessity. Most years she’d spent the summer recovering from the school year and moving to a new place. Last summer they’d had the wedding to worry about, but this year, this was just uninterrupted time for her and Cullen to be together. 

They had a routine that worked pretty well. They’d get up and eat breakfast together, and then catch up on the news, workout, and then do their daily chores around the house and the yard. There was also plenty of sex, and that was a welcome interruption to any of their routine. 

It was late afternoon, and the heat of a Denerim summer was in full force. They were both in the living room, blinds closed, and ceiling fan circulating. Argos had foregone his bed, and was instead situated right beside the vent that blew cool air into the room. 

She and Cullen were both working on their laptops, separately. He was putting together new lesson plans, and she was writing up another proposal and hopes for more money for their English Language Development program. 

Mara liked working with music on, so she had headphones in since Cullen preferred silence. She had a particularly awesome summer anthem blasting while she worked, so when Cullen handed her a piece of paper she was a little startled. 

She pulled the earbud out and looked up at him. “What is this?” 

Cullen smirked. “I got distracted.”

She laughed. “ _ You _ got distracted?” Cullen’s focus was really unparalleled. She often tried to distract them both on self-imposed grading nights. She only ever managed to get him away from the grading with sex. So it really was surprising that Cullen had managed to get distracted by anything while she’d been working hard at her computer. 

“Uh...read it?” Cullen said instead of offering an explanation. 

He looked the tiniest bit nervous, but Mara couldn’t imagine why he would be. So she started reading. 

And was immediately horrified. 

Well, horrified wasn’t the right word, but it was definitely surprising. It was smut. Not just any smut though, it was smut about  _ them _ . 

Mara enjoyed a good romance book every now and again, and was grateful that Cassandra so often had the best recommendations with the best written sex scenes. Cullen teased her about it, but it was all in good fun. This was a whole other level of something. Mara wasn’t quite sure she had the words for it. 

This was...this was sexting on steroids. And they’d tried sexting the last time she’d been away at a conference. They were really bad at it. Both of them too caught up in trying to write something good that it just hadn’t worked for either of them. 

“What is this?” Mara asked, voice higher than she intended. 

Cullen had sat down on the arm of the couch, hand rubbing at the back of his neck. “What I’ve been thinking about all afternoon.”

The piece was titled Living Room, and then it proceeded to go into great detail about exactly what they would do to one another.  _ You crawl over to me, straddle my legs and sit facing me. Smiling mischievously you don't say anything, you just slowly start pulling your shirt up. _

Mara knew her face was burning, and she hadn’t even really gotten to the smuttiest bits yet. She’d read plenty of smutty literature, usually without so much as a blush. This was next level. 

“It’s...um...it’s us…” Mara was finding the words a little difficult to find as she reached the end of the very smutty page. It wasn’t flowery, words couched in beautiful turns of phrase. It was solid, and straightforward, rather like the man that had written it. 

Cullen wasn’t looking at her, and his cheeks were just the slightest tinge of pink. “I’m sorry, I should have warned you or talked to you first or…”

His words drifted off and she realized that he had taken her being absolutely flustered for not liking what he’d written. 

“No!” Mara said, still struggling to find the right words to express what it was she was feeling. “Don’t be sorry. I’m just...surprised.”

Cullen’s golden eyes lifted to meet hers. “Surprised? You don’t hate it?”

Mara smiled. “Of course not. Though I didn’t realize you moonlighted as a romance writer. Should we tell Varric?” 

“Definitely not.” 

Mara shut down her computer and stood. “So this is what you want right now, exactly?” 

Cullen swallowed. “Well, not exactly...I mean, I’m open to suggestions?” 

She laughed and gently guided him to sit down on the sofa, then she straddled his hips. Then she started to lift up her shirt. “So I think it started like this?” 

Cullen caught her lips in a scorching kiss. “I love you,” he whispered before helping her out of her shirt. 


	53. Feeling Up To It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written for #sexlaughterhonesty week. Sometimes you disregard things your body is doing in favor of sex, and sometimes you really probably shouldn't.

Mara was chasing an orgasm, and it wouldn’t take much longer, she hoped. It wasn’t an exact science or anything, but it felt close and that was what was important. When Cullen pulled her back down while she straddled his hips, her breath caught as the rush of pleasure washed over her. 

Her eyes had fallen shut at some point, and she opened them to see Cullen grinning up at her, clearly enjoying the view as one hand skimmed her waist before cupping her breast. 

It went like that for a while, until things seemed to plateau? She wasn’t feeling the slow build anymore, and she couldn’t really feel Cullen’s cock anymore. 

She slowed her movements, leaning down to press a kiss to his lips. “Hey, um...I’m not sure…”

Cullen sighed and the annoyance was clear on his face as he spoke to the ceiling instead of to her. “I don’t think I’m hard.”

It happened, infrequently, and usually very much to Cullen’s frustration. Mara tried very hard to not make a big deal out of it, but there was usually a reason. Too tired, not feeling well, lots of reasons that had nothing to do with how much either of them wanted to have sex. 

“Everything okay?”

“I have this splitting headache,” Cullen confessed. 

She swatted his bare chest. “And you didn’t say anything ten minutes ago because…?”

“My beautiful wife instigates sex for the first time in weeks, you really think that I’m going to turn that down?” 

“It hasn’t been that long!” Mara replied, but as she sifted through the last month, it sort of had. She had been sick, and then Cullen had been sick, and then there had been parent-teacher conferences. So it had been a while. 

Cullen leveled a look at her of pure disbelief. “It has been an unacceptably long time.”

Mara laughed. “Fine, I concede that point, but come on what did you think would happen? Having sex with me would magically cure all the things?” 

Cullen rolled his eyes. “No, just figured that an orgasm wouldn’t hurt.”

Mara kissed his chin before moving off of him. “Here’s my plan: I’m going to go get you meds and some water, and we’re going to stay naked and watch another episode of that history show you love and I suffer through. And when you’re feeling up to it, we’ll give it another go. Deal?”

“‘Feeling up’ did you just really?” Cullen looked both impressed and amused, and Mara couldn’t contain a smirk. But then Cullen looked suddenly offended. “I thought you liked my history show?” 

Mara pulled the blankets back up over Cullen and waggled her eyebrows. “Oh, I’m sure I’ll find a way to stay entertained while we watch it.”

“I love you.”

“You better because your headache sort of stole my orgasm,” Mara replied as she walked to the bathroom. 

Cullen was rubbing his temples, the only real sign of how poorly he was feeling. “I promise to make it up to you when my head stops throbbing.”

Mara returned to the bed with meds and a glass of water. “I’ll hold you to that, Rutherford.”


End file.
